The Diplomat’s trap: How Madhuri Gupta fell for a Pakistani honeytrap

India Today

Before the Jyoti Malhotra honeytrap scandal shocked the nation, there was Madhuri Gupta- a seasoned Indian diplomat who fell for a Pakistani handler and leaked classified intelligence.

Transcript

00:00When the Jyoti Malhotra case came to light, it was Dejavu for India.

00:04Fifteen years ago, in 2010, diplomat Madhuri Gupta was convicted of spying for Pakistan's ISI,

00:09underscoring the persistent threat of espionage and the use of tactics like honey trapping.

00:14Gupta, a Gruppi Indian Foreign Service officer, was posted in Islamabad in 2007

00:19as second secretary, press and information at the Indian High Commission.

00:23Madhuri Gupta was a seasoned diplomat, JNU alum, fluent in Urdu, a Sufi poetry lover,

00:28with postings in Iraq, Liberia, Malaysia and Croatia.

00:32But in Islamabad, love met espionage.

00:35Javed Rashid, a Pakistani journalist, introduced her to intelligence operatives

00:39Mubshir Raza Rana and Jamshed, codenamed Jim.

00:43Gupta, then 52, grew close to Jim, age 30, who was tasked with seducing her and extracting secrets.

00:49The Honey Trap was a textbook case.

00:51It started with helping her find a rare book by Jaishya Muhammad chief Masood Azhar.

00:55Roomy codes turned into late-night chats, talk of marriage, even conversion to Islam and moving to Istanbul.

01:01Gupta leaked over 70 emails with classified intel, defense details, operation blueprints,

01:07even Indian officer IDs and details linked to the 2611 attacks.

01:11According to the chart sheet, all were sent via her official computer and Blackberry

01:15using email accounts created by her handlers such as lastrao at the rate gmail dot com and arao at the rate gmail dot com.

01:22In March 2010, Gupta tried to gather intel on JNK's Kashmir annual plan and a 310 megawatt hydro project

01:29as instructed by her handlers.

01:31In a letter dated October 3, 2009, in the 700-page chart sheet, Gupta had quoted that Jamshed treats me like a dog.

01:38In early 2010, barely a year and a half after the 2611 Mumbai attacks,

01:44whispers of a mole inside the High Commission reached then IV chief Rajiv Mathur.

01:48On April 21, 2010, Gupta was summoned to Delhi under the pretext of SARC summit preparations

01:53and was arrested at the Ministry of External Affairs by Delhi Police's special cell on April 22, 2010.

02:00Her confession revealed she leaked sensitive defense info and exposed Indian operatives,

02:05though no physical documents were found.

02:06In 2018, a Delhi court convicted her under Section 3 and 5 of the Official Secrets Act

02:12and Section 120B of the IPC criminal conspiracy, sentencing her to three years in jail.

02:18Gupta died in 2021 at the age of 64, awaiting her trial.

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