Spy Files: In Pakistan, 4 murders, returning to India with a child in her womb: The Kashmiri spy who had her husband killed, poisoned her brother-in-law, and crushed a servant under a truck — Sehmat Part 2
1 hour ago | Author: Indrabhushan Mishra
Bhaskar series 'Spy Files' brings you the story of spy Sehmat. In Part 1, you read that Hidayat Khan, a Kashmiri textile trader, was a RAW agent in India. He had deep connections with Pakistani army officers. He got cancer. Before his death, he ...
Sehmat's father-in-law, Saeed, was a Brigadier in the Pakistan army, and her brother-in-law, Mahboob, was a Major. Sehmat won over the family so much that Brigadier Saeed began seeking her advice even on army matters. Sehmat cleverly also brought Lieutenant General Amir Khan, Brigadier Saeed's boss, under her influence. Thus, RAW started receiving classified intelligence from the Pakistan army. Part 2 continues the story...
[Image: Spy Sehmat used to send messages to India via a hidden transmitter in the bathroom. AI image]
Two years had passed since Sehmat lived in Pakistan. She had not yet obtained any major information. She realized she needed to do something big. One day, she told her father-in-law Saeed that she wanted to teach music at a school.
Saeed got angry. He said, 'Women in our family do not work. Do you lack anything?'
Sehmat softly replied, 'I lack nothing, but I'm bored sitting at home. I'm getting restless.'
Just then, Iqbal arrived. He said, 'Sehmat is right, Abbaji. She is interested in music. Through the school, she will also keep busy.'
After thinking for a while, the Brigadier said, 'Do as you both think fit, but the family's name should not be tarnished.'
Sehmat smiled and said, 'Yes, Abbaji.'
A few days later, Sehmat started teaching music at a school. This was no ordinary school; it admitted children of Pakistan's rich and top army officers.
Soon, Sehmat's searching eyes found their target — 'Anwar Khan.'
Anwar was the grandson of Lieutenant General Imtiaz Khan, a powerful Pakistani army officer. He was not interested in music, but Sehmat made him the group leader of the music class. She arranged special training for him, making him practice for hours every day. Gradually, Anwar's interest in music grew.
A few months later, the school's annual function was scheduled. Sehmat invited Lieutenant General Imtiaz Khan and his wife. Both attended.
Watching Anwar's performance, Lieutenant General Imtiaz and his wife, sitting in the front row of the auditorium, were extremely pleased. They saw only one face behind their grandson's performance — the lady teacher, Sehmat.
That evening opened the doors of General Imtiaz's lavish bungalow for Sehmat. Gradually, she became so close to the General's family that their daily routines and family discussions seemed incomplete without her.
This also benefited Sehmat's Pakistani family. Brigadier Saeed became the Deputy Chief of Pakistan's powerful intelligence agency, ISI. That is, Sehmat, through her father-in-law, had now reached the threshold of ISI.
[Image: Lady teacher Sehmat with Anwar, the grandson of a Pakistani officer. AI image]
Harinder Sikka, the former Navy officer who wrote Sehmat's biography, says: 'One evening, the study room of the mansion was silent. Sehmat was going through the Brigadier's files. Suddenly, beads of sweat appeared on her forehead. One page read: Pakistani submarines are to move towards the Bay of Bengal. Target: destroy INS Vikrant.
Photographs of India's largest warship, INS Vikrant, were attached, containing complete details from the number of crew members to the deployment of weapons.
Coincidentally, at that time Sehmat's sister-in-law Munira had gone to her maternal home. Her husband, Captain Iqbal, and brother-in-law Major Mahboob were busy with their work. Sehmat hid that file in her clothes and quietly went to her bathroom.'
Suddenly... 'Thap! Thap! Thap!' The bathroom door banged loudly. Outside stood the servant Abdul, pounding the door violently.
Sehmat panicked. For a few seconds, she held her breath, composed herself, and then shouted in a commanding voice, 'Wait outside, Abdul, I am coming!'
Abdul left.
Now Sehmat sent a message to RAW using the hidden transmitter in the bathroom. Then she quietly returned to her room. She composed herself and silently went to the study room, placed the secret paper back among countless files, and left.
In the corridor, her father-in-law Brigadier Saeed stood bewildered. 'Where were you, Sehmat? I have been searching for a file...'
'Abbaji, don't worry. Please go to your room and rest, I'll find it and bring it.' Sehmat knew which file had raised the Brigadier's blood pressure.
A few minutes later, Sehmat stood before the Brigadier with that very file. Saeed took the file without a word and walked briskly towards his office.
As soon as the Brigadier left, Sehmat returned to her room. The bathroom door was open. The secret machine used to send messages had been removed.
'Abdul has seen everything!' Murmuring to herself, Sehmat ran back outside. She saw a familiar shadow going towards the mansion gate through the back kitchen path. It was Abdul.
At the mansion's gate stood an army ration supply truck, whose driver had gone somewhere nearby. With lightning speed, Sehmat sat in the driver's seat, turned the key, and pressed the accelerator.
After a short distance, she found Abdul running. He was heading towards Brigadier Saeed's office. Seeing the army truck coming, Abdul waved both hands in the air — 'Stop! Stop!'
Instead of the brake, Sehmat pressed the accelerator with full force. In the blink of an eye... the truck's heavy tires rolled over Abdul and moved on.
[Image: After crushing Abdul, Sehmat left the truck on the road and fled. AI image]
Leaving the truck by the roadside, Sehmat got down. She snatched a burqa hanging on a wire outside a house, put it on, and almost ran back to the mansion. First, she headed to the bathroom. She erased all evidence there.
Meanwhile, someone had taken the bleeding Abdul to the hospital. Upon hearing the news, Sehmat's brother-in-law, Major Mahboob, also reached the hospital.
Seeing Mahboob, Abdul tried to say something, but only a gurgling sound came from his throat. With great effort, he pulled his hand out from under the blanket and placed two pieces of metal in the Major's palm.
Mahboob grabbed Abdul's face and shouted, 'Tell me, Abdul! What happened? Who did this?'
He only said, 'M... m... ma...' and his eyes closed forever.
At night, Major Mahboob returned home with deep stress on his face. He informed the family of Abdul's death and took out those two pieces of metal from his pocket, placing them on the table.
Standing in a distant corner, Sehmat's heart pounded. She understood that Mahboob was a sharp military officer. He would leave no stone unturned to uncover the secret behind those two pieces.
Sehmat now had to do something else, and quickly.
One day, Sehmat put on a burqa, got into a car, and left for a nearby mosque. Outside the mosque, in the scorching sun, a ragged woman was selling umbrellas. Seeing Sehmat, she began to plead, 'Madam, for God's sake, buy an umbrella. My children have been hungry since morning; if I get some money, I can arrange their meals.'
The driver was annoyed, but Sehmat took out two hundred-rupee notes from her purse and took the umbrella.
[Image: Sehmat talking to the umbrella-selling woman. AI image]
Returning home, Sehmat closed her room's door. She gently twisted the umbrella handle. A small glass vial came out of the handle. A handwritten note was attached to it: 'By pressing the button attached to this, you can directly inject a few drops of a special chemical into a person's body. The victim won't feel any pain and will die within hours.'
After a while, Sehmat hid that umbrella in her purse and, pretending to go to the market, headed towards the Pakistan Army's 'Bureau of Inspection.' Her brother-in-law Mahboob worked in this office.
Reaching there, she stood in a corner on the first floor. She waited for about 20 minutes. A military vehicle stopped downstairs. An officer in deep green uniform got out. Sehmat recognized him — 'That's Major Mahboob.'
He was quickly climbing the stairs. Just then, Sehmat stumbled and fell.
'Oh! Watch out...' Mahboob rushed forward to save her. They collided for a moment, and at that instant, Sehmat pressed the button on the umbrella from inside her burqa. The chemical from the umbrella tip entered Mahboob's body.
Sehmat steadied herself, thanked him, and moved on. She turned back to see that the Major, while climbing the stairs, was gently rubbing his arm. Sehmat smiled to herself — 'Work done.'
Within a few hours, chaos erupted at the Bureau of Inspection office. Major Mahboob had fallen to the floor clutching his chest. He was rushed to the military hospital. Doctors tried their best, but could not save Mahboob. The cause of death was reported as a heart attack.
Mourning set in at Sehmat's home. Everyone was wailing, but Mahboob's widow Munira's eyes held a deep suspicion.
First, the murder of the loyal servant Abdul, his handing over those metal pieces to Mahboob as he lay dying, and then Mahboob's sudden departure from the world... Munira understood that there was a link behind both deaths.
Meanwhile, the Brigadier's life was torn between two fronts. On one side was the mourning of two deaths in the family, on the other side were war preparations. Amid this chaos, he had an urgent meeting with the Prime Minister, for which 'Top Secret' files were prepared.
As usual, Sehmat prepared the Brigadier's briefcase and, seizing the opportunity, memorized the pages of the files. Those pages contained war strategies along with a list of ISI agents based in Delhi.
[Image: Sehmat preparing a file for Brigadier Saeed. AI image]
Sehmat had to deliver this message across the border at all costs. To get out under strict surveillance, Sehmat convinced her sister-in-law Munira to accompany her to the mosque.
As soon as they reached the mosque, Sehmat said, 'You wait here for me. I'll bring some fresh flowers for Major Sahib's shrine.'
Sehmat ordered a large basket of flowers and, avoiding eyes, ran towards a nearby phone booth. The phone was out of order. No other booth was visible nearby. Then her eyes fell on a paan shop. Sehmat used the shopkeeper's phone and, panting, relayed the entire intelligence message.
When Sehmat returned home, army vehicles were parked outside the mansion. Inside stood two ISI officers. On the room's table lay those bloodstained metal pieces, seeing which sent a shiver through Sehmat.
ISI had caught the florist and the paan shopkeeper. For the next several days, ISI officers kept visiting the mansion. One afternoon, fed up, Sehmat said sternly to the officers, 'Saeed Sahib is resting right now. You either wait here or come later.'
The officers exchanged glances and handed Sehmat a sealed envelope, saying, 'Alright, Begum Sahiba, please give this file to Brigadier Sahib.'
As soon as the officers left, Sehmat opened the envelope. It read: 'There has been a major security breach in the mansion. Intelligence is being sent to India. The traitor is inside the house.'
To hide her panic, Sehmat went to the bathroom. A little later, when she opened the door, she froze seeing the person standing in front. It was her husband, Captain Iqbal.
He stared at Sehmat and said, 'Can I use your bathroom?'
Sehmat understood that Iqbal had guessed about the hidden transmitter. She simply nodded and stepped aside. Iqbal entered.
Sehmat quickly picked up Iqbal's wallet lying on the table. Among crisp notes, a small piece of paper was kept. Sehmat read it and put it back.
Five minutes later, when Iqbal opened the door, he saw Sehmat standing with a gleaming revolver. Her finger was on the trigger, aimed at Iqbal.
Sehmat said in a firm tone, 'Iqbal, I did not come here to decorate your bed and live as your wife. I came for my country, India. Listen carefully: whoever becomes an obstacle in my path, I will crush him... even if that person is you.'
What Iqbal saw in the bathroom and what his ears heard from Sehmat was no less than a shock. Sehmat still lived in his heart. He looked helplessly at Sehmat and said, 'Leave all this; you will be caught. ISI has taken Munira for questioning, and Abbaji has been told not to leave headquarters.'
Sehmat kept smiling... and said laughingly to Iqbal, 'My dear, you are very naive. Do you think you can scare a girl who left her country and came here? It would be better if you do as I say; it is for your and your family's good. I have no enmity with your family.'
She made Iqbal sit on a nearby chair and tied him with a rope. Iqbal struggled for a long time. Then Sehmat freed his handcuffs and threatened, 'You are always in my sights. If you try any cleverness, then consider yourself and your family finished.'
[Image: Sehmat made it clear to her husband Iqbal that from now on he was always in her sights. AI image]
The next day, a gleaming car with an army flag stopped at the main gate of the cantonment. As the guard moved forward for a search and ID check, the rear window of the car slid down. A sharp voice echoed from inside: 'I am GOC Bashir. Which road goes to General Saeed's mansion?'
The frightened guard pointed towards the mansion without any questions: 'Sir, straight to the right.' The car moved on.
After waiting a while in the mansion's drawing room, the man disguised as General Bashir came face to face with Major Iqbal. The General said, 'Major, your wife teaches music at the best and most prestigious school in this city; I have heard great praise of her. I thought why not meet her.'
Iqbal said nothing. Just then, Sehmat entered the hall. She had a loaded revolver hidden in her black purse.
Amid formal conversation, the General took a folded paper from his pocket and handed it to Sehmat, saying, 'Begum Sahiba, this letter contains condolences for your family.'
Sehmat opened the letter. On top were words of consolation, but the real message hidden between the lines was: 'Exactly three hours later, near the old valleys.'
Sehmat returned the letter to the General and went inside after saying goodbye. The General also took leave from Major Iqbal.
That same night, around 8 p.m. The RAW officer, in local Pathani attire, sat at a corner table in a famous Rawalpindi restaurant, sipping tea.
At the appointed time, a woman wrapped in a burqa entered the restaurant. Behind her walked a very scared and terrified Major Iqbal.
Just then, the RAW officer sensed that outside, behind vehicles, Pakistani ISI sharpshooters were ready. Their fingers were on the trigger, aimed directly at the woman in the burqa and Iqbal.
Sweat broke out on the RAW officer's forehead. 'Sehmat has been caught! If ISI captures her alive, she might break in the torture cell. India's entire network, dozens of sleeper cells, and years of hard work will be destroyed.'
Thinking this, with a heavy heart, he put his right hand into the inner pocket of his jacket and pressed a small electronic transmitter button three times.
'Whoosh...!' A poisonous arrow cut through the silence and struck the neck of the woman in the burqa. She collapsed on the floor. Before the Pakistani agents could comprehend, a loud explosion occurred in the back part of the restaurant. Screaming erupted everywhere.
[Image: As soon as the RAW agent triggered the explosion, panic spread in the Rawalpindi market. AI image]
Taking advantage of the stampede, the RAW officer and his associates fled from there. They reached a safe, closed room far from the city. Everyone was silent. The RAW officer sat with his head buried in his hands. His soul was tormented: 'When he returned to India, what would he tell Sehmat's old mother? How could he say that to save the country, he killed his own best agent?'
'Ring-ring...' Suddenly, the doorbell pierced the silence.
Electricity ran through the agents in the room. The officer, removing the safety catch of his revolver, ordered in a very stern tone: 'No one will be taken alive. Kill as many enemies as you can, or shoot yourself.'
The bell rang again. The officer moved towards the door and peered through the peephole.
His fingers loosened, and the heavy pistol fell to the floor. His eyes remained wide open. With trembling hands, he opened the door latch.
Outside stood Sehmat, alive and well.
Everyone in the room seemed turned to stone. No one could believe their eyes. The officer asked in astonishment, 'How did you escape alive?'
A smile appeared on Sehmat's face. 'It wasn't me at the restaurant with Iqbal. I had sent Munira wearing my burqa in my place.'
Sehmat's mission was now complete. The RAW team secretly escorted Sehmat across the border and brought her back to India. Upon setting foot on her homeland, Sehmat felt that she had not only brought memories. A medical checkup revealed that she was carrying Major Iqbal's child.
A few months later, Sehmat gave birth to a son. Later, that child wore the uniform of the Indian Army and took an oath to protect the country.
Sehmat's son had told his mother's story to author Harinder Singh Sikka. Harinder Sikka claims to have met Sehmat and visited Pakistan several times. After 8 years of research, he wrote the book 'Sehmat Calling.'
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Also read: Spy Sehmat Part 1...
Pakistani daughter-in-law turns out to be Indian spy: Left boyfriend, married army officer, sent messages from bathroom to save INS Vikrant; Sehmat Part 1
