Rajasthani caught sending SIM cards to Pakistan
and Ankita Bhandari murder case
Happy Friday!
It's the end of the week, finally. But before you slide into weekend mode, we've got two stories today that refuse to be ignored.
Heavy stories? Yes. But important? Absolutely.
📌 Pakistan’s ISI strikes again, but India strikes back
Delhi Police’s Special Cell has arrested a 34-year-old cleric from Bharatpur, Rajasthan, for allegedly spying for Pakistan’s notorious intelligence agency, ISI.
The man, identified as Mohammad Kasim, was reportedly trained in classic espionage techniques, from gathering sensitive intel to communicating securely with handlers across the border using encrypted apps and social media.
This arrest isn’t random. It’s part of a larger operation dubbed Operation Sindoor, launched after the Pahalgam terror attack in April that killed 26 tourists.
During this probe, intel agencies uncovered that Indian SIM cards were being smuggled into Pakistan and misused by ISI operatives. Kasim’s name cropped up soon after and turned out to be a key piece in this growing espionage puzzle.
Turns out, Kasim visited Pakistan twice, once in August 2024 and again in March 2025, spending nearly three months meeting with ISI personnel. Investigators claim his brother, also suspected to be an ISI asset, accompanied him. Kasim allegedly supplied Indian SIMs to ISI, which were then used to trick Indian citizens into revealing defence secrets.
He’s now in police custody under the Official Secrets Act and will be grilled further in the coming days. According to officers, he had been assigned tasks like photographing troop movements and defence installations in Rajasthan missions that could have had dangerous implications for national security.
📌 Who was Ankita Bhandari? Know about her murder mystery
Ankita worked as a receptionist at Vanantara Resort in Rishikesh.
In September 2022, she was allegedly killed after resisting pressure to offer “extra services” to a VIP guest. The accused reportedly pushed her into the Chilla barrage. Her body was found six days later, sparking massive public outrage across Uttarakhand.
Nearly two years after the horrific murder of 19-year-old Ankita Bhandari, justice is finally within reach. On May 30, 2025, the Additional District and Sessions Court in Kotdwar pronounced three men, Pulkit Arya (resort owner and son of a now-expelled BJP leader), and his employees Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta, guilty of her murder.
Security was intense on verdict day; the court premises were turned into a fortress, with only government employees and court attendees allowed entry. Ankita’s mother, Soni Devi, broke down outside the court, pleading for public support and demanding the death penalty for her daughter’s killers.
The case, marred by political links and delays, saw a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe the matter, with 100 witnesses listed and 47 testifying.
A massive 500-page chargesheet was submitted, and the accused were even booked under the Gangster Act.
Despite political attempts to hijack the narrative, the focus has largely remained on justice. Ankita’s family received financial support and government jobs as a small consolation. But the real closure, many feel, will come only when the sentence is delivered, and it is as strong as the crime was cruel.
📌 WATCH: Odisha officer throws money out window
Odisha’s Vigilance Department recently carried out surprise raids at seven locations tied to Baikuntha Nath Sarangi, the Chief Engineer of the Rural Development Department.
Why? Allegations surfaced that Sarangi was living a bit too large, his assets seemed way beyond what his official salary could explain.
But here’s where things get dramatic.
As vigilance officers knocked on his Bhubaneswar flat, Sarangi allegedly tried to toss bundles of ₹500 notes out the window, yes, literally throwing money away!
Officers weren’t amused. They quickly stepped in and began combing through his properties, armed with search warrants from the Special Judge (Vigilance) in Angul.
The numbers? ₹1 crore was recovered from his Bhubaneswar flat, and another ₹1.1 crore was found in his Angul home. Officials used currency counting machines.
The properties under the scanner included houses and flats across Bhubaneswar, Puri, and Angul. The team that pulled this off was no small squad either: 8 DSPs, 12 inspectors, and 6 ASIs.
The investigation is still underway, and more layers are likely to unfold. For now, Sarangi’s alleged attempt to make money fly (literally) is making headlines and raising some serious questions about corruption in high places.
📌 India’s economy cools but is still thriving
India’s economy grew at 6.5% in 2024–25, according to official data released Friday, beating market expectations but slowing from the 9.2% growth seen the year before.
The final quarter of the fiscal year (January–March) clocked a 7.4% expansion, which pulled down the annual average a bit but still stayed in line with estimates from the Reserve Bank of India and the Finance Ministry.
While that last quarter was stronger than expected, it was still lower than the 8.4% growth seen in the same period a year ago.
On the ground, India’s construction sector was the star performer with a 10.8% growth in Q4 and 9.4% for the full year. Public services and finance weren’t far behind either.
Private consumption, basically people spending money, picked up steam, growing at 7.2% over the year. That’s better than last year’s 5.6%, thanks to improved rural demand, even though urban spending remained cautious.
There was a bit of a twist, though: government spending actually shrank by 1.8% in the last quarter, after a big jump earlier.
On the brighter side, capital investments went up 9.4%, a hopeful sign, though some private firms held back due to global uncertainties.
Retail inflation cooled to a six-year low in April, and with a good monsoon forecast, food prices are expected to stay stable. That opens the door for the RBI to cut interest rates, which could further boost spending and investment in the months ahead.
So, that’s it for today. If you enjoyed this edition, subscribe to hear from us every day!
See ya 👋
