ASSAM, India (Diya TV) — A civilian employee posted at an Indian Air Force station in Assam has been arrested in an alleged espionage case that investigators say may be part of a wider Pakistan-linked network. The accused, Sumit Kumar, 36, was working as a multi-tasking staff member at the Air Force Station in Chabua, in Assam’s Dibrugarh district, when he was detained in a joint operation by Rajasthan Intelligence and Air Force Intelligence. Officials say the case first began to unravel after the January 2026 arrest of another suspect in Jaisalmer, which eventually led investigators to Kumar.
According to investigators, Kumar had allegedly been in contact with Pakistani intelligence operatives since 2023 and was sharing confidential military information in exchange for money. Authorities say the information he is suspected of passing on included sensitive details related to Air Force installations, such as the locations of fighter aircraft, missile systems, and personnel information. Some reports also say investigators are examining whether information linked to both Chabua in Assam and Nal Air Force Station in Bikaner may have been compromised.
One of the most significant recent updates in the case is the money trail investigators say they have traced. Rajasthan police’s intelligence wing has alleged that Kumar received about ₹3.25 lakh in exchange for sharing classified information. Additional Director General of Police (Intelligence) Prafful Kumar told local media that the exact nature of the information leaked, and the identities of the handlers in Pakistan, are still being determined.
Another recent development is that Kumar was remanded to custody in Jaipur until April 2, 2026, as agencies intensify interrogation. Investigators also allege he deleted crucial chats and data from his mobile phone in an apparent attempt to destroy evidence. Reports say he was brought to a central interrogation facility in Jaipur, where multiple agencies are now questioning him to establish both the scale of the breach and whether additional suspects were involved.
The case has drawn added attention because of Chabua’s strategic location in India’s northeast. The air base lies in a sensitive region near India’s borders with China and Myanmar, and is considered an important operational installation. That has raised broader concerns about insider threats inside high-security defence facilities and whether low-profile civilian or support staff may be increasingly targeted by hostile intelligence networks operating through social media and covert digital channels. Officials allege Kumar’s contacts with Pakistani operatives were maintained through social media accounts, including fake accounts used to obscure the communication trail.
Police have said Kumar has been booked under the Official Secrets Act, 1923, along with relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The investigation remains active.
