DRDO's senior scientist PM Kurulkar held for espionage

SECTIONS

ET BureauLast Updated: May 05, 2023, 12:10 AM IST

Font Size

Save

Comment

Synopsis

ATS has alleged that PM Kurulkar, director of R&D Establishment (Engineers), a premier systems engineering laboratory of DRDO, was allegedly in touch with ISI agents through social media. The ATS suspects that the scientist was honey-trapped.

Maharashtra ATS arrests DRDO scientist from Pune on espionage charges

The Maharashtra anti-terrorism squad on Thursday arrested a highly decorated and important senior scientist of the Defence Research and Development Organisation, PM Kurulkar, for allegedly sharing sensitive defence related information to agents of Pakistan's Inter-Service Intelligence. He was produced before the Pune court which remanded him to custody until May 9.

ATS has alleged that Kurulkar, director of R&D Establishment (Engineers), a premier systems engineering laboratory of DRDO, was allegedly in touch with ISI agents through social media. The ATS suspects that the scientist was honey-trapped.

Police insiders said that Kurulkar was on the radar of the intelligence agencies tracking his social media for some time now. "After gathering sufficient evidence that Kurulkar could have compromised with sensitive defence related information, he was arrested by the Maharashtra ATS," a senior home department official told ET.

Kurulkar was bestowed the Science Day Award for best publication in 2000, the DRDO Agni Award for excellence in self-reliance in 2002, the DRDO Award for path-breaking research/outstanding technology development in 2008 for Akash and the DRDO award for performance excellence for MRSAM in 2016 and the award for excellence of technology by Dema in 2016.

An outstanding scientist, Kurulkar joined DRDO at CVRDE, Avadi, in 1988, after completing his degree in electrical engineering from COEP, Pune, in 1985.

Thursday, 04 May, 2023

Experience Your Economic Times Newspaper, The Digital Way!

Read Complete Print Edition »

Front page
Pure Politics
Companies
Economy
More

3 Go First Lenders Open to Rejigging Airline’s Debt
Go First lenders Central Bank of India, Bank of Baroda and Deutsche Bank have declined to provide additional finance immediately to the Wadia Group-promoted airline but are open to a debt recast involving a longer tenure for repayments, said people aware of the development.
India Seen as One of Airbnb’s Biggest Markets in this Decade
CEO and cofounder Brian Chesky spoke to Anumeha Chaturvedi and Vinod Mahanta about India being one of the biggest growth markets of this decade, global inflationary pressures and their impact on travel and bouncing back from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Willing to Tie Up with NPCI; GoI has been Vital Catalyst
Visa Inc is open to cooperating with even the National Payments Corp of India (NPCI) as it looks to expand its footprint locally, its executive chairman Alfred Kelly tells Saloni Shukla & MC Govardhana Rangan.