Remanded till June 2, Nagpur woman vows Pak return after release

NAGPUR: Sunita Jamgade , 43, told police she plans to return to Pakistan after securing bail, just hours after a Nagpur magistrate opened his residence past midnight to authorise her arrest for suspected espionage after she crossed the LoC and entered POK, reports Soumitra Bose.

Jamgade, a former nurse, was taken into custody before sunrise Thursday after arriving by train from New Delhi. Judicial approval was granted shortly after midnight by magistrate A U Mote, who allowed police to place her under CCTV surveillance at Pardi police station. She is in police remand until June 2 under charges that include violation of the Official Secrets Act .

Police said Jamgade vanished on May 14 after travelling to Hundermaan hamlet, the last Indian village along LoC. She left her 15-year-old son at a hotel in Kargil and crossed into POK, where she remained untraceable for nine days before being handed over to Indian authorities by Pakistan Rangers on May 23. "She is emboldened after her stay across the border and keeps changing her versions," a police source said. "She now says she'll return to Pakistan once out on bail." She told interrogators she had crossed over to find a hospital job and raise money to return to Nagpur.

DCP Niketan Kadam said police found her mobile phone in a formatted state with a suspicious app installed. Forensic teams are working to extract deleted data. Investigators are also probing possible spyware, a visit to Regional Mental Hospital on May 2, and her SIM card activity.