West Bengal STF arrested Fazle Rabbi, brother of former TMC Islampur block president Zakir Hossain, in a suspected ISI-linked espionage case.
Investigators allege that sensitive photographs, videos and information relating to military and security installations were collected for transmission to Pakistan-linked handlers.
Rabbi's wife has claimed that he was framed because of his brother's political connections, while the STF continues its investigation into the suspected network.
West Bengal Police's Special Task Force (STF) has arrested Fazle Rabbi, the brother of former Trinamool Congress Islampur block president Zakir Hossain, in connection with an ongoing investigation into a suspected espionage network allegedly linked to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
His name reportedly surfaced during the interrogation of three men arrested earlier in the case, as per a report by The Indian Express.
Rabbi is the sibling of Zakir Hossain, the former Trinamool Congress (TMC) block president of Islampur in Uttar Dinajpur. No spying-related charges have been framed against Hossain himself, though Rabbi's family alleges he was framed due to Hossain's political ties.
The crackdown follows sustained intelligence operations. These targeted efforts aim to neutralise suspects accused of leaking crucial defence and strategic data to handlers in Pakistan.
Rabbi is charged with spying for Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), leaking sensitive information, operating within an ISI-backed Fake Indian Currency Note (FICN) smuggling network and illicitly supplying Indian SIM cards to Pakistani handlers via Bangladesh.
Who Is Fazle Rabbi?
Police officers monitored electronic trails and banking transfers connecting the suspect directly to his ISI contacts. Authorities allege he transmitted geographical coordinates, pictures and video footage detailing critical military bases alongside troop deployments.
The STF investigation as of August 2026 revealed that the accused, Rana Rauf Khalid (alias Wahab Alam) and Mohammad Ijaz, allegedly obtained a map and photographs of Fort William, the Indian Army's Eastern Command headquarters in Kolkata.
They also collected sensitive photographs and videos of various military installations around Kolkata, Border Security Force (BSF) camps and troop movements near the Petrapole and Ghojadanga border areas and railway infrastructure, operations and tracks.
The STF stated that these compromised documents and media were targeted for transmission to Pakistan's ISI via handlers and contacts based in Nepal and Bangladesh.
Rabbi’s wife, Nur Nehar Begum, claimed he was framed. “He is being targeted because he is the brother of a senior Trinamool leader. This is political vendetta and nothing else,” she told the media, as quoted by Indian Express.
STF Expands Probe Into Suspected ISI Network
Police officers confiscated several cellular devices. The search operation also yielded numerous SIM cards and various compromising documents from the suspect's possession.
Earlier, the Shahzad Bhatti Network (SBN) an ISI-backed terror syndicate, has come under a multi-state crackdown ahead of Independence Day.
Indian security agencies detained 253 people across 14 states during an operation conducted on August 12, the ministry said on Monday. More than 80 FIRs have been registered and over 200 arrests recorded against the network.
The operation was carried out as part of the government’s "zero tolerance" policy towards cross-border terrorism.
In a post on X, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the Modi government had "destroyed" the ISI-backed terror group and thwarted its plans for subversive attacks by arresting more than 200 operatives.
