Femme fatales: ISI's new weapon is no fake
Brijesh Pandey, IBNLive.com
January 15, 2008
http://www.ibnlive.com/news/femme-fatales-isis-new-weapon-is-no-fake/56506-3.html?xml

The Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Pakistan’s dreaded espionage agency, has unleashed a new terror on India: women who courier counterfeit currency.

The Delhi Police’s Special Cell arrested a woman called Tabassum on July 17, 2007 for carrying fake currency worth Rs 33 lakh.

Then on September 21 the Special Cell arrested two men with fake currency. Their interrogation revealed that they got the money from two women called Rashida and Mehrunisha

The Special Cell on November 21 busted an ISI-backed syndicate and seized Rs 19.5 lakh in fake notes from two men who revealed that the consignment was brought from Nepal with the help of a woman based in West Bengal.

The police say the ISI is now busy recruiting middle class women in western Uttar Pradesh, the National Capital Region and Maharashtra. “They are recruiting women because they feel police won’t suspect them easily,” says Alok Kumar, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Special Cell.

Women desperate for money are forced into this racket, say police officers. The women are given air tickets, put up in plush hotels and are just expected to be carriers. They don’t even know who their boss is so even if they are arrested their interrogation does not gives any leads to the police.

The ISI has also been using new entry points for fake currency. The Nepal and Bangladesh border, Samjhauta Express and the Delhi-Lahore bus service 'Sada-e-Sarhad' have been popular means of pumping in fake currency. But now they are using Sri Lanka, Thailand and Malaysia. Indian security officials therefore have their task cut out.