In a high-stakes national security operation with implications cutting deep into central India, Korba district of Chhattisgarh has surfaced as a critical node in a Pakistan-linked espionage investigation being spearheaded by the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Acting on strategic inputs and cross-agency surveillance, NIA teams recently launched sweeping raids across eight states, including a sensitive and secretive operation in Korba, triggering fresh interest from the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and Chhattisgarh Police. The missing figure at the heart of the Korba operation is an unnamed individual, reportedly a businessman, who vanished without a trace before the May 31 raids. His links with suspended CRPF personnel Moti Ram Jat, currently in NIA custody, have elevated him as a person of critical interest. Well-placed sources in intelligence agencies of both state and centre privy to this high-profile and sensitive development related to national security averred to The Hitavada that the NIA team from Delhi deliberately kept both state police and local IB units out of the loop.

 

“The entire Korba operation was executed under tight operational blackout, based solely on a ‘need-to-know’ protocol,” one of them disclosed. According to intelligence officials closely monitoring the developments, even senior district police officers in Chhattisgarh remained completely unaware that a central NIA team had entered Korba, let alone that searches linked to a cross-border espionage ring had been executed. The covert nature of the operation, they noted, was deliberate and structured on a strict ‘need-to-know’ basis to prevent any local leakages or operational compromise.

 

The breakthrough, as confirmed by official communique of NIA as well as sources privy to this sensitive probe, came with the arrest of Moti Ram Jat—a suspended Assistant Sub-Inspector of CRPF—who had been booked under multiple sections of the Official Secrets Act and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Investigators revealed that Jat was posted with the 65th Battalion of CRPF at Baradera camp in Mandir Hasaud area of Raipur and frequently deployed in Gariaband district between 2015 and 2017. It was during this Chhattisgarh stint, they said, that he developed a discreet association with the Korba-based suspect who is now absconding. According to intelligence handlers familiar with his trajectory, Jat’s early service as a Constable later transformed into a serious vulnerability following his transfer to Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir, where he was allegedly ensnared by a female Pakistani intelligence operative (PIO). “It began with casual information sharing disguised as media sourcing,” a source closely tracking the interrogation confirmed while speaking to this newspaper under strict confidentiality, “but soon matured into structured espionage, enabled by financial inducements and foreign handlers.” Over time, a male PIO was introduced, and monetary transfers were arranged in exchange for confidential deployment data, setting in motion the chain that eventually led to Jat’s arrest.

 

According to internal surveillance data reviewed by multi-agency units, Jat’s financial conduits included the now-absconding Korba man, who is believed to have acted as an intermediary for hawala-based fund movements. This critical disclosure prompted the NIA to initiate a coordinated multi-state crackdown on May 31, with Korba in Chhattisgarh also figuring among the locations covered during the operation. The central anti-terror agency raided 15 premises in Delhi, Maharashtra, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Assam, and West Bengal. The suspect was not found at the location during the NIA’s discreet search ops to Korba, and his current whereabouts remain unknown, adding a layer of complexity to the ongoing investigation.

 

The NIA confirmed the seizure of sensitive financial ledgers, encrypted digital devices, and other incriminating documents from several locations. These are currently being subjected to forensic scrutiny to decode transaction chains, establish end beneficiaries, and trace communication routes linking Indian soil with Pakistan-based handlers. Officials monitoring the case indicated that the involvement of a suspect from an industrial district like Korba has prompted a closer examination of how such regions may occasionally be exploited for covert financial linkages. When contacted, Chhattisgarh Police officials said no prior information about the NIA’s operations had been shared with them. However, sources in the state’s internal intelligence apparatus disclosed to this reporter that discreet surveillance units have now been activated to independently monitor the fugitive suspect’s digital footprint, financial trails, and support ecosystem.

 

The operation also sheds light on the vulnerability of paramilitary personnel to psychological manipulation and monetary inducement, particularly in postings prone to prolonged isolation or operational fatigue. The CRPF, for its part, has dismissed Jat from service following his arrest and is conducting internal reviews to trace any further breaches linked to the 65th Battalion or its satellite deployments in Chhattisgarh.