Rajeev Sharma is now in the custody of the special cell.
Key points
- Rajeev Sharma is accused of passing classified defense information to Chinese intelligence
- Police accused a Chinese woman and a Nepalese of being part of the spy scam
- Lou Peng, a former Chinese national, was accused of paying bribes to Tibetan monks
New Delhi: Delhi Police on Saturday officially said that freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma was passing confidential and classified information to Chinese intelligence.
After many years, Indian law enforcement agencies have accused Chinese intelligence of spying. Rajeev Sharma has been arrested along with a Chinese woman, Qin Shi, and his Nepalese partner, Sher Singh.
“Special Cell arrested an independent journalist Rajeev Sharma for passing sensitive information to Chinese intelligence,” Delhi police said in a statement.
The case is being investigated by Deputy Police Commissioner (special cell) Sanjeev Yadav. “A Chinese woman and her Nepalese aide have also been arrested for paying Sharma large amounts of money sent through shell companies,” said Sanjeev Yadav (special cell) of DCP.
Delhi police have said that Chinese intelligence agencies reportedly asked Sharma for “confidential information” and offered large amounts of money.
A large number of mobile phones, laptops and other incriminating and sensitive material have been recovered, the sources said.
(Nepalese man Sher Singh)
Sources said Sharma, a resident of Pitampura in northwestern Delhi, was arrested by the special cell on September 14. An FIR (230/2020) has been filed in a case of the Law of Official Secrets.
“It was found that he was in possession of some classified defense-related documents. The investigation of the case is still ongoing,” said a senior police officer who requested anonymity.
(Chinese qing shi woman )
Sharma was brought before a Delhi court on September 15. He is currently being questioned by a joint team of Central Intelligence Agencies and a special cell of the Delhi Police.
Sharma had previously worked with a news agency and a prominent newspaper. She also wrote columns for various publications and ran a YouTube channel. Her main area of focus was foreign and strategic affairs.
In August, the Income Tax raided several Chinese citizens residing in the national capital region, who were charged with money laundering.
During the investigation, it was discovered that Charlie Peng, also known as Lou Peng, had tried to pay bribes to monks living in Majnu ka Tila (North Delhi) in order to enter the Dalai Lama’s core group.
Lou Peng illegally entered India in 2014 and assumed the Indian identity. Chinese intelligence had tasked him with controlling Tibetan refugees and the Dalai Lama.
