Who is DRDO Scientist Pradeep Kurulkar, Arrested in Espionage Case For Revealing Sensitive Information to Pakistani Spy?

Key Points

ON JUNE 18, 2026, a special court in Pune framed charges against Pradeep Kurulkar, the former director of Defence Research and Development Organisation’s (DRDO) Research and Development (Engineers) wing in an alleged espionage case. Back in May 2023, Kurulkar became a victim of an alleged honey-trap orchestrated by a Pakistani spy, known as Zara Dasgupta, and revealed sensitive information about top Indian defense programs — such as BrahMos and Agni-6 — to her. 

Kurulkar has been indicted under sections 3 & 5 of the Official Secrets Act (OSA), which deals with penalties for spying and wrongful communications respectively.

Pradeep Kurulkar was arrested by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on May 3, 2023, on charges of espionage and allegedly sharing sensitive defense-related information with a suspected Pakistani intelligence operative. He was later remanded to judicial custody.

Special prosecutor  Ujjawala Pawar says that processing for the legal case against Kurulkar is set to commence from July onwards. “As the case involves provisions of the Official Secrets Act, the proceedings will be held in-camera," Pawar said. The prosecutor, as quoted by PTI, added that the prosecution has been directed to submit a list of documents it will rely upon during the trial.

See also: Eyes that spy: ISI’s CCTV espionage ring driven by women, underage recruits

What the Maharashtra ATS Chargesheet Says 

The ATS on June 30, 2023, filed a 1835-page chargesheet against the former R&D director for divulging crucial and sensitive information related to India’s top military programs — such as Brahmos and Agni 6 — to a Pakistani intelligence operative (PSO) named Zara Dasgupta.

As part of its investigation, the ATS examined digital evidence. In November 2024, a forensic science laboratory report on the chats allegedly exchanged between Kurulkar and the suspected Pakistani agent was submitted to the special court.

The ATS had earlier opposed Kurulkar’s bail application, while his legal team argued for his discharge from the case.

Who Is Zara Dasgupta? 

According to the ATS, Zara Dasgupta, who introduced herself as a UK-based software engineer, allegedly lured Kurulkar by sending him several explicit messages and voice notes, and held video calls with him via WhatsApp.

The probe revealed that Kurulkar and Dasgupta had several conversations between June 10, 2022, and February 24, 2023. The ATS has alleged that Dasgupta sought confidential information from Kurulkar regarding various DRDO and other defense projects in India.

Alleged Leaks of BrahMos, Agni-6 and Other Projects 

The ATS recovered alleged WhatsApp messages between Kurulkar and Dasgupta, which have also been attached to the chargesheet. According to the document, the two discussed “BrahMos” between October 19 and October 28, 2022. In one exchange, Kurulkar is quoted as saying he had “an initial design report…covering all BrahMos versions,” but added that he could not share a copy via WhatsApp or email as it was “highly classified.”

See also: 'Agni Prime' ballistic missile successfully flight-tested by DRDO

The BrahMos is the world’s fastest supersonic cruise missile, developed by India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in collaboration with Russia's NPO Mashinostroyeniya. The missile is highly versatile and can be launched from land, ships, submarines, and fighter aircrafts.

The ATS has specifically highlighted a chat dated October 28, 2022, in the chargesheet, claiming that despite knowing the information was highly confidential and could not be shared over WhatsApp or email, Kurulkar told Zara he would show it to her when they met in person.

The chargesheet also mentions WhatsApp chats between Kurulkar and Dasgupta on “Agni-6 (intercontinental ballistic missile), Rustom (a medium altitude long-endurance unmanned air vehicle), Surface to Air Missiles (SAM), Unmanned Combat Air Vehicles (UCAV), Drone projects” of DRDO. It further includes discussions on “Quadcopter, DRDO duty chart, Meteor missile, Rafael, Akash and Astra missile,” and refers to a private Indian defence company executive who is a DRDO vendor and supplies “robotic equipment” to Indian forces.

(Edited by Vaishnavi Sivadasan)

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