Delhi scrap dealer arrested for allegedly aiding Pakistan spy, family cries foul

The morning quiet of Seelampur’s maze-like streets was broken by the arrival of plainclothes officers. At a modest three-storey house, 45-year-old scrap dealer Mohammad Harun was quietly led into an unmarked vehicle. No explanation, no warning — just the sudden disappearance of a man his family insists is no spy.

Two days later, Harun’s name made national news.

The Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) announced his arrest on charges of espionage, claiming he was linked to an official at the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi — an official now expelled from India. According to investigators, Harun allegedly routed suspicious payments through his bank accounts and facilitated visa requests for Pakistani nationals, possibly feeding a shadowy pipeline of intelligence.

But inside Harun’s family home, a different version of the story is being told — one of a man caught between two lives, not two nations.

“My brother barely scraped by,” says Wasim, his voice tinged with disbelief. “If he was really receiving money from Pakistan, then where’s the wealth? He didn’t even own a separate house. He lived with us. Always has.”

Wasim says Harun’s visits to Pakistan weren’t covert missions but cross-border commitments. During the Covid lockdown, Harun quietly married a second wife — a cousin from Gujranwala. “She was abandoned and divorced,” Wasim explains. “He wanted to help her. He planned to bring her here, start a life. That’s all.”

The ATS, however, alleges Harun’s dealings with the expelled Pakistani diplomat went far beyond personal matters. They say he used his position to process visa applications for money, helped move funds between accounts, and may have knowingly aided in the circulation of sensitive information. He now faces serious charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita — including waging war against the state.

Back in Seelampur, Harun’s family is still reeling. “The first we heard, they said he was in Noida. Then, a call came asking us to come to Lucknow,” Wasim recalls. “A relative who saw him there said he just kept saying, ‘I’m innocent. They’ve got it wrong.’”

The legal process is now underway, but for Harun’s family, answers are scarce, and fear hangs thick. In a deeply polarized time, when accusations of national betrayal spread fast and stick hard, they’re pleading for fairness — and proof.

“He may have made mistakes in his personal life,” Wasim admits. “But calling him a traitor without evidence? That’s a mistake we all may live with — unless the truth comes out.”