In a shocking development last year, Delhi Police had busted a major Chinese spy ring in the capital city. Freelance journalist Rajeev Sharma, associated with the likes of The Quint, Tribune, Sakaal Times, and others was arrested by the Delhi Police under the Official Secrets Act (OSA). The Delhi Police had also alleged that Rajeev Sharma had been found in possession of defence-related classified papers and was sharing sensitive information to Chinese intelligence. Now, in an even more concerning development, which speaks volumes as to how India’s media fraternity is filled with hostile foreign agents, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Rajeev Sharma on Thursday, July 1.
ED has arrested Rajeev Sharma, a freelance journalist under PMLA on the charges of supplying confidential and sensitive information to Chinese Intelligence officers, in exchange for remuneration pic.twitter.com/qauHIsVIv2
— ED (@dir_ed) July 3, 2021
Rajeev Sharma was out on bail since December last year, and now that he has been arrested by the ED, the freelance journalist’s troubles are all set to exponentially rise. The agency registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act against Sharma on the basis of the Delhi Police FIR in the espionage matter. The agency has secured his seven-day custody from a special court.
In a statement, the ED said, “During the investigation, it was revealed that Rajeev Sharma had supplied confidential and sensitive information to Chinese intelligence officers in exchange for remuneration thereby compromising the security and national interests of India.”
The ED also explained how huge transactions were made by Sharma with various Chinese companies and some other trading companies in India. These Chinese companies were acting as a conduit for the Chinese Intelligence agencies to provide remuneration for people like Rajeev Sharma who indulged in criminal activities.
The probe has found that cash for payments to “journalist” Rajeev Sharma and other unknown persons was being generated through hawala means by Delhi based shell companies that were run by Chinese nationals namely Zhang Cheng alias Suraj, Zhang Lixia alias Usha and Quing Shi along with a Nepali national Sher Singh alias Raj Bohara.
The arrest of ‘freelance journalist’ Rajeev Sharma has, on expected lines, sent India’s vested media fraternity and liberal cabal into a tizzy. Last year too, after the Chinese agent’s arrest, many were floundering all over social media to defend what according to them was the wrongful arrest of a senior journalist and an attack no less on press freedom.
The fact that there is a section of Indian media that has sold its soul to foreign handlers, including those based out of China, is known to all. China relies on the same nexus to churn out pro-CCP narratives in India. With the arrest of Rajeev Sharma, there is a high possibility of the man spilling the beans on the said nexus, which will then result in the dismantling of the same by Indian agencies.
The cover being blown off the China-owned coterie of journalists in India does not serve the long-term purpose of the CCP, which aims at hijacking discourse within India and direct it in its favour. To add to its woes, Rajeev Sharma must definitely be privy to many secrets, which the ED will now extract from him. China is therefore staring at an imminent loss of face internationally over how it got caught red-handed, interfering with an independent country’s media and influencing them, to perhaps gain a firm hold over the people of the country. It is not far-fetched to say that Rajeev Sharma is just the tip of the iceberg and many freelance journalists who stay in India are involved in Chinese espionage.