Mumbai man held for ISI links innocent: Family

MUMBAI - Almost three weeks after the arrest of suspected Pakistani agent Javed Abdul Gafoor Mozawala, his family and lawyer Monday claimed the police had implicated him in cheating and spying cases.

Mozawala, 30, a travel agent suspect to be linked to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence, was arrested by Mumbai’s Crime Branch for cheating, forgery and passing on secret information to Pakistani High Commission officials in New Delhi.

“My husband is a very simple man. He is innocent. He is being falsely implicated. But I have faith in the Indian law. I know, we will get justice,” said Fatima, Mozawala’s wife.

Mozawala, a resident of Infinity Tower at Mazgaon in south Mumbai, is currently in judicial custody.

Mozawala’s lawyer Mubin Solkar alleged that he was picked-up on the night of Dec 7 and not Dec 8, as claimed by police.

“After the arrest of Mozawala and the subsequent seizure of the alleged incriminating documents from the accused’s house, police failed to carry any panchnama (a document that records evidence after an accused’s premises is searched),” Solkar said.

Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) Himanshu Roy said: “The process of law and panchnama has been carried out by the police in a fair way and we have substantial evidence against Mozawala.”

Solkar said that no sensitive documents or incriminating material were seized from his house as reported.

Answering questions about Mozawala’s Pakistan link, he said that Mozawala’s aunt had married a Pakistani and her family resided there.

“He had gone there (Pakistan) twice for family functions in 2005 and 2006,” Solkar said.

Solkar claimed that Mozawala was a travel agent who worked with the Haj committee as a seasonal clerk before setting up his own travel agency.