The Maharashtra state Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has arrested a senior director of Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) for allegedly providing confidential information to a Pakistani agent, officials said on Thursday.
Scientist Pradeep Kurulkar (60), director, DRDO (Engineers) in Pune was arrested in a suspected case of honeytrap, the release issued by ATS said.
“The scientist, by misusing his position, despite knowing that the official secrets in his possession if obtained by the enemy country can pose a threat to the security of the country, provided the sensitive details illegally to the enemy country,” an ATS release said.
According to ATS Pune officer, the scientist who held a senior position in the premier defence research institute was allegedly in touch with an agent of a “Pakistan Intelligence Operative” through voice and video calls by messaging app.
According to ATS, the investigation was initiated following a complaint received from the DRDO. Kurulkar was arrested on Wednesday and produced in court on Thursday. The court remanded him to ATS custody.
Sources confirmed that it seems that the accused was lured by photos of a woman on social media sites and later came in contact with Pakistani intelligence operatives the last year.
Despite the attempts, Ministry of Defence did not share reply.
Kurulkar joined DRDO at Combat Vehicles Research & Development Establishment (CVRDE), Avadi (Chennai) in 1988 after completing his Bachelor’s degree (BE) in electrical engineering from College of Engineering, Pune in 1985, according to his profile on DRDO website.
“He further completed his advanced courses in power electronics from IIT Kanpur with specialisation in drives and application. His area of specialisation is design and development of missile launchers, military engineering equipment, advanced robotics and mobile unmanned systems for military applications,” the DRDO website stated.