TRIAL DATE SET FOR ONETIME INDIAN DIPLOMAT ACCUSED OF BEING PAKISTANI OPERATIVE

March 22 was set by an Indian court this week as the start date for the trial of Madhuri Gupta, an erstwhile Second Secretary grade diplomat at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad, on espionage and conspiracy charges related to allegations she had turned over classified information to Pakistani intelligence. The espionage charges against the officer in India’s Ministry of External Affairs were made pursuant to sections 3 and 5 of the Official Secrets Act, while the criminal conspiracy charge stemmed from section 120B of India’s Penal Code. Ms. Gupta’s arrest in April of 2010 by Delhi Police’s Special Cell took place after Indian officials grew suspicious of her and placed her under surveillance, commencing in 2009. During the six months immediately prior to the arrest, Gupta was watched ever more closely until she was brought home on the ruse of discussions in conjunction with the SAARC summit occurring in Bhutan. Upon Gupta’s return, she was subjected to detention and questioning over a period of 2 to 3 days. The formal arrest encompassed claims of spying as well as leaking a number of significant documents. Accounts of Gupta’s Pakistani ties assert she was an agent for approximately two years.