New Delhi: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Friday arrested its former SP and IPS officer Arvind Digvijay Negi. Negi, a Himachal cadre IPS officer, is accused of leaking confidential documents to a member of the banned terrorist organization Lashkar-e-Taiba. An agency spokesperson said Negi, promoted to the 2011 batch of the Indian Police Service (IPS), was arrested on November 6 last year in connection with a case registered by the NIA. The case pertains to the proliferation of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) network to facilitate the conspiracy and execution of terrorist activities in India. The NIA had earlier arrested six people in this case.
The spokesperson said the role of Negi posted in Shimla after his return from the NIA was probed and his houses were searched. He said it was also found that official confidential documents of the NIA were leaked by Negi to another accused person, who is a member of Lashkar. Negi’s role came to the fore during the NIA investigation against HR activist Khurram Parvez. The news channels reported in November that Khurram and others have leveled allegations against Negi, which is being verified by the NIA. On November 6, 2021, the NIA launched a probe into Lashkar-e-Taiba’s extensive network of OGWs. The OGW was charged with planning and facilitating terrorist activities in India.
According to officials, Negi, who was one of the most eminent officers of the NIA, had come under the scanner after being alerted by intelligence agencies. An official told that the investigation started after an intelligence input that details of the investigation of important cases were being shared by the concerned officer with Pakistan’s ISI. The allegation is that Negi passed the case diary to the ISI in an important investigation.
It is suspected that he had dealt with documents of important matters in exchange for money, an official said. Investigating agencies are probing the properties of the accused etc. Officials said the electronic devices confiscated during the search were also scanned for evidence before the arrest was decided. Raids were also conducted on the premises of a former NIA officer in Himachal Pradesh’s Kinnaur. The NIA has made the arrest after verifying the claims made by the suspects and giving Negi a chance to clarify several times.
