Balasore, Sept 13: A suspected ISI agent, Asif Ali, was brought before the JMFC Court in Balasore by the Meerut police. Ali, who is currently incarcerated in Meerut Jail, Uttar Pradesh, in connection with another case, was transported to Odisha to stand trial for his alleged involvement in a spying operation tied to the Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur, a facility of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).

The court rejected Ali's bail application, and he has since been transferred to Balasore Jail. The case stems from an incident in 2015 when Ishwar Behera, a contractual photographer at ITR Chandipur, was arrested for allegedly leaking classified documents and photographs to foreign agencies. Behera, hailing from Kantipur in Mayurbhanj district, was sentenced to life imprisonment on February 11, 2021, for passing on sensitive defence information in 2014.

Further investigations revealed that Behera had strong links with Asif Ali, which led to Ali's arrest. Evidence uncovered during the probe revealed that Behera had received money transfers from various locations, including Mumbai, Meerut, Ajmer, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, and even Abu Dhabi in the Middle East.