“EX-BRAHMOS ENGINEER RECEIVES LIFE SENTENCE FOR ESPIONAGE FOR PAKISTAN”

Why in the news?

Nishant Pradeepkumar Agrawal, ex-BrahMos engineer, was sentenced to life imprisonment for spying for Pakistan, convicted under the IT Act and Official Secrets Act by a Nagpur court.
Arrested in 2018, Agrawal was involved in leaking sensitive BrahMos missile data to Pakistani intelligence, entangled through cyber espionage activities.

source:pib

About BrahMos Missile:

Type: Long-range, nuclear-capable supersonic cruise missile.
Speed: Up to Mach 3, one of the world’s fastest cruise missiles.
Platforms: Deployable from air, sea, and land.
Name Origin: Rivers Brahmaputra (India) and Moskva (Russia).
Joint Venture: BrahMos Aerospace formed by DRDO (India) and NPO Mashinostroyenia (Russia).

About Official Secrets Act of 1923:

Origins: British colonial period, Indian Official Secrets Act (Act XIV) of 1889 to suppress anti-British newspapers.
Purpose: Counteracts espionage, condemns actions aiding enemy states against India.
Punishments: Spying, sharing confidential information, withholding sensitive data.
Current Version: Indian Official Secrets Act (Act No XIX of 1923) extends to all secrecy and confidentiality issues in governance.

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