A serving Wing Commander of the Indian Air Force (IAF) allegedly shared highly classified military information - including a page of a secret war plan, details of a covert drone unit and fighter aircraft deployments - with a suspected Pakistani intelligence operative, according to a Delhi Police chargesheet filed in a Delhi court and reported by The Indian Express on Friday, November 13.

Source: The Indian Express via Madhyamam

The officer, aged around 44, has not been named because the case is sub-judice. Police say he was posted in a sensitive unit on the Western Front and had been under surveillance by the IAF's Air Intelligence Unit before being handed over to law enforcement. He was arrested on May 30, 2026, following a complaint from IAF authorities, and has been booked under the Official Secrets Act, 1923. He remains in judicial custody at Tihar Jail.

According to the chargesheet, the officer was in contact with the suspected operative over WhatsApp between January 12 and April 1, 2026. Forensic examination of the exchange reportedly found 3,008 text messages, 65 images, 42 voice calls and four video calls. Investigators describe the case as a honey-trap: the officer, said to be going through a personal crisis, was allegedly approached by a woman on social media.

Police allege that after receiving a nude photograph from the operative, the officer uploaded a page from the classified war plan - and allegedly said he would provide a fresh page for every further photograph. The chargesheet lists what was allegedly passed on: the strength, structure, trials, endurance and targeting capability of a secret drone unit; locations earmarked for deployment during hostilities; fighter deployments in Leh; information on the Leh airbase; and details of a military exercise at the Mahajan Field Firing Range in Suratgarh.

Fresh reporting on the chargesheet on Friday added that the woman operative allegedly used an Indian mobile SIM issued in Gujarat for the WhatsApp contact, and allegedly sent malware intended to be installed on the phones and laptops of the officer's subordinates to extract more classified information.

Source: Devdiscourse

The chargesheet, filed by the Counter Intelligence unit of the Delhi Police Special Cell, is pending before the Patiala House Court for cognisance, and the sanction required to prosecute is awaited, the reporting said. Offences under the Official Secrets Act involving military or air force affairs can carry a prison term of up to 14 years.

Allegations, not findings

Everything attributed above is what police allege in the chargesheet, as reported by The Indian Express and other outlets on November 13. The officer has not been convicted; the allegations are yet to be established in court and the case is sub-judice.

What happens next: the court will decide on taking cognisance of the chargesheet once the prosecution sanction is in place. The case will then move to arguments on charge - the first real test of the evidence police say they recovered from the officer's devices.