The Bombay High Court on Wednesday denied bail to retired DRDO scientist Pradeep Kurulkar, arrested in 2023 on charges of sharing sensitive information with an alleged Pakistani woman intelligence operative, noting that he passed on vital information during intimate chats.
A bench of Justice S G Dige also stated that, although retired, Kurulkar may influence some of the witnesses who had worked under him and might abscond. Kurulkar, 60, was arrested by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on May 3, 2023, in a suspected honey-trap espionage case based on a complaint lodged by the defence research establishment.
The accused has claimed that the information alleged to have been provided to the Pakistani intelligence officer is already in the public domain. The prosecution opposed bail, arguing that the conversations involved sensitive defence information.
Denying bail to Kurulkar, the bench stated that Kurulkar, despite holding a senior post in the Defence Research and Development Organisation, continued intimate chats with a Pakistan-based officer for more than a year and passed over vital information.
The court further stated that although Kurulkar is now retired, some of the witnesses in the case are his subordinates and hence he may influence them. There is also a chance that he may abscond, the bench added.
According to the ATS, investigators had recovered what they described as “explosive” chats between the scientist and a woman alleged to be linked to the Pakistani intelligence agency. The ATS suspects that Kurulkar, the then director (research and development) at DRDO, discussed details related to several strategic defence systems during these exchanges and shared confidential information in an attempt to cultivate an intimate relationship with the woman.
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