Sat phone calls to Pak: Mandya in NIA sights

Bengaluru: The country's premier National Investigation Agency (NIA) is learnt to have picked up a few people from Mandya district for allegedly making satellite phone calls to Pakistan.

But top officials from the state said that they have not made any arrests and that they do not have any information if a central investigative agency has detained people for questioning. "They will never inform us if they raid any place, except when they need local logistic support. We will not know the purpose of their visit or if they have arrested anyone," they said.

NIA reportedly got information about a dozen satellite phones being active in Mandya district which were being used to make calls to the neighbouring country regularly. The calls went from different places in the district, including a few villages.

The agency then stepped up its vigil to zero in on those who made the calls and reportedly picked up a few suspects.

In a similar case, an NIA team was in Dakshina Kannada recently after coming to know that some people were using satellite phones to establish contact with those from the neighbouring country. The agency has been collecting information about the possible sleeper cells that have contacts with Pakistan.

A police officer on condition of anonymity told Deccan Chronicle that the cases of such importance are usually handled by central investigative agencies because of their wider reach. Any case pertaining to national security is dealt with by the designated agencies.