Cops probe 'internal sabotage' in ordnance unit security breach

LUCKNOW: UP Police is investigating a suspected security breach involving potential " internal sabotage " at Hazratpur Ordnance Equipment Factory in Firozabad after it emerged that a South African staffer of an American aerospace and defence component manufacturer made an unauthorised visit to the facility, classified by Intelligence Bureau as a "Category C establishment".

Firozabad chief judicial magistrate Naresh Kumar Diwakar ordered police to start the probe based on a complaint by the ordnance factory's security officer Raghav Sharma, naming two colleagues as having covertly escorted Thomas Ferdinand Adlam onto the high-security premises without any clearance or written authorisation. Adlam, 60, was in India from Feb 24 to 28 on a tourist visa.

The court's three-page order quotes Sharma, a former lieutenant commander of the Indian Navy, as terming the alleged breach "a threat to national security".

The ordnance factory recently received "brake parachute technology transfer" for Sukhoi Su-30 aircraft , and contributes to space projects like Gaganyaan and drone development.

Deputy general manager Himmatlal Kumawat, a 2011-batch Indian Ordnance Factory Services officer, stands accused of trying to pressure Sharma into allowing Adlam to visit the facility by bypassing the mandatory security clearance. The complaint names another official of the same rank, Vipin Kathiyar, as siding with Kumawat.

When Sharma didn't relent, Kumawat allegedly facilitated Adlam's unauthorised tour without his knowledge. The DGM had allegedly assaulted Sharma in his office on Feb 21 after an argument over the foreigner's planned visit. The court document states that witnesses, including a security guard and a contract worker, intervened to separate the duo.

The alleged breach occurred barely two weeks before UP Police's Anti-Terrorist Squad arrested Ravindra Kumar, a chargeman who reported to Kumawat at the factory. Ravindra was arrested on March 14 for allegedly using his smartphone to share classified documents with a suspected ISI agent.

An internal investigation revealed that Himmatlal and Vipin had previously allowed staff to use smartphones inside the facility in violation of security protocol.

CJM Diwakar said during a hearing on Aug 8 that entry into a defence facility without authorisation was a cognisable offence. He directed police to register an FIR and submit the findings of the investigation within 24 hours. Tundla police station received a copy of the order, a copy of which is with TOI, only on Aug 22.