The Gujarat Police on Friday said Altaf Qureshi, a suspected ISI agent held from Mumbai two days ago, had been arrested during a communal riot at Dhoraji in Rajkot district in 2002.
After Qureshi was arrested from south Mumbai by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), Rajkot police started a probe into his links in Gujarat, said Antrip Sood, SP, Rajkot. Qureshi, 37, accused of working for Pakistan’s spy agency ISI, had been arrested and charge-sheeted in a rioting case in his hometown Dhoraji in 2002.
“On checking past records, we found he was arrested as well as charge-sheeted in a case of rioting and attempt to murder during an incident of communal violence in Dhoraji. He was part of a mob which damaged property,” Mr. Sood said. Qureshi’s family still lives in Dhoraji.
“We have learned that Qureshi moved to Mumbai a few years ago. Upon learning about his arrest, we formed several teams to investigate whether he had any connections here,” Mr. Sood said.
According to the ATS, Qureshi deposited money in the bank account of Aftab Ali, another ISI agent, in Lucknow for carrying out espionage activities. Ali was arrested from Faizabad in UP on May 3. Acting on leads provided by Ali, the UP ATS picked up Altaf and Javed Naviwala from Mumbai. The three were part of an espionage ring with links to the Pakistan High Commission, ATS officials said on Thursday.
