How a psychiatrist became mobile supplier for Lashkar terrorists in Bengaluru jail: Inside Rs 1 crore racket busted by NIA

A shocking case has emerged from Bengaluru Central Prison. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested a psychiatrist, Dr Nagaraj, for supplying mobile phones to terrorists and criminals inside the jail. According to TOI, the illegal phone racket helped plan extortion, murder, and even terror operations, all from behind bars. The racket is estimated to be worth nearly Rs 1 crore.

Dr Nagaraj, a psychiatrist at the prison, secretly gave mobile phones to inmates. One of the main recipients was Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorist Tadiyandavide Naseer, who is serving a life sentence. The phones were reportedly used to push radical ideologies and communicate with other terrorists.

NIA officers said Nagaraj earned money by selling or renting phones inside jail. He sold Rs 10,000 Android phones for more than Rs 30,000 each. Inmates who couldn't afford to buy a phone paid Rs 500 each for phone and SIM card rental. Over 100 phones are suspected to have been smuggled in.

Rs 70 lakh traced to nurse’s bank account

The money trail led the NIA to Pallavi (also known as Pavithra), a nurse working at a private hospital and known to be close to Nagaraj. Her bank account had transactions worth more than Rs 70 lakh, which she claimed belonged to Dr Nagaraj.

Nagaraj’s wife, a government employee in Chintamani, was reportedly unaware of his activities. He visited her every Sunday.

As a doctor, Nagaraj was not regularly checked at the prison gates. This allowed him to bring phones in, despite the presence of mobile signal jammers.

Officials said police are also looking for Satish Gowda, an employee of a private telecom firm in Kolar, who is believed to have supplied SIM cards.

NIA arrests three, reveals link to Lashkar plot

Dr Nagaraj was arrested along with Chand Pasha (an assistant sub-inspector) and Anees Fathima, mother of absconding terror suspect Junaid Ahmed. The three were presented in a special NIA court. The court granted six days of NIA custody.

NIA’s lawyer, P Prasanna Kumar, told the court the phones Nagaraj smuggled in were used by Naseer for Lashkar-e-Taiba activities. He also said that Pasha helped the terrorists and received illegal payments. Anees was involved in handling money transfers for the group.

Not the first time: Counsellor caught too

Last month, another woman counsellor was caught trying to smuggle a mobile phone into the jail. She had hidden it in her private parts and was caught by the Karnataka State Industrial Security Force (KSISF) using a metal detector.

Malini Krishnamurthy, DGP of prisons, confirmed that Nagaraj was linked to an earlier 2023 terror case. “This arrest is a result of continuous investigation. We have now upgraded mobile jammers and enforced strict checks,” she said.

Inputs from TOI