It was an angry wife seeking divorce that exposed the foreign origins of Dewanchand Malik in India's premier external intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW). It certainly makes for a curious Sherlock Holmes story but for the fact that it has serious and dangerous implications.
While it may not be a case of a foreign spy worming his way into the heart of the Indian intelligence system, it still reflects poorly on the agency's ability to spot fakes within its set-up. The fact that a Bangladesh-born Malik could enter RAW at a fairly responsible level — and stay there for years — exposes the fact that the intelligence agency is quite lax in checking the antecedents of its employees. It is only after the Malik exposure that RAW has added a further layer of security clearance.
What comes out of this story is also the over-reliance on affidavits signed by government employees which can be used to establish identity. Such attestations help in getting everything from ration cards to passports and, as seen in this case, jobs in secret agencies. What is required is independent and rigorous verification of the candidate's claims; this is where RAW did not come up to scratch.
The agency, once well-regarded, seems to be getting hit by scandals. Senior officers have been found to be double agents and in recent times, controversies over top level appointments have riven the agency. Though it is a secretive organisation and the efficacy of its 'product' remains unknown to laypersons, scandals like these will affect its reputation. The manner in which the Malik case was handled also raises questions. The response to Malik's wife's letter should not have been a manhunt for the absconder. Instead, he should have been assured that the domestic storm would not affect his job. Efforts should have been made to retain him with the agency before he was gradually marginalised. Instead, the old police practice of chasing a wrongdoer was set in motion. A tighter security clearance for future recruitments is the needed prescription. But there is also the need for a lateral approach to the problem of recruitment; international agencies now are going in for direct advertising of jobs, though the eventual selection remains a well-guarded secret.
Though the word put out is that there is no evidence about Malik disappearing with any secrets, an international agency would be happy to get hold of him. The secrets of the nation could, therefore, be compromised. RAW needs to clean up its stables and ensure that it doesn't get hit by any more revelations
http://intellibriefs.blogspot.ca/2007/06/indian-intelligence-raw-runs-for-cover.html
Anyone knows what happened to this Mole (Diwan Chand Mallick)
While it may not be a case of a foreign spy worming his way into the heart of the Indian intelligence system, it still reflects poorly on the agency's ability to spot fakes within its set-up. The fact that a Bangladesh-born Malik could enter RAW at a fairly responsible level — and stay there for years — exposes the fact that the intelligence agency is quite lax in checking the antecedents of its employees. It is only after the Malik exposure that RAW has added a further layer of security clearance.
What comes out of this story is also the over-reliance on affidavits signed by government employees which can be used to establish identity. Such attestations help in getting everything from ration cards to passports and, as seen in this case, jobs in secret agencies. What is required is independent and rigorous verification of the candidate's claims; this is where RAW did not come up to scratch.
The agency, once well-regarded, seems to be getting hit by scandals. Senior officers have been found to be double agents and in recent times, controversies over top level appointments have riven the agency. Though it is a secretive organisation and the efficacy of its 'product' remains unknown to laypersons, scandals like these will affect its reputation. The manner in which the Malik case was handled also raises questions. The response to Malik's wife's letter should not have been a manhunt for the absconder. Instead, he should have been assured that the domestic storm would not affect his job. Efforts should have been made to retain him with the agency before he was gradually marginalised. Instead, the old police practice of chasing a wrongdoer was set in motion. A tighter security clearance for future recruitments is the needed prescription. But there is also the need for a lateral approach to the problem of recruitment; international agencies now are going in for direct advertising of jobs, though the eventual selection remains a well-guarded secret.
Though the word put out is that there is no evidence about Malik disappearing with any secrets, an international agency would be happy to get hold of him. The secrets of the nation could, therefore, be compromised. RAW needs to clean up its stables and ensure that it doesn't get hit by any more revelations
http://intellibriefs.blogspot.ca/2007/06/indian-intelligence-raw-runs-for-cover.html
Anyone knows what happened to this Mole (Diwan Chand Mallick)
