Senior investigative journalist Fakhar Durrani has released what he says are audio recordings and evidence alleging that India’s intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), sought to expand its influence in Pakistan’s media by promoting content from foreign news organisations, including Germany’s Deutsche Welle (DW), the UK’s The Sun, and a French newspaper.
According to Durrani, the material reveals an alleged effort by RAW-linked operatives to secure space for foreign media content in Pakistan’s media landscape rather than incite protests or unrest.
Durrani said he held a 36-minute conversation on July 3 with a person he identified as an alleged Indian agent. He claimed the individual said the objective was to increase the presence of content from Deutsche Welle and other Western media outlets in Pakistani media.
During the conversation, the alleged agent also discussed the controversial Pegasus spyware project and what Durrani described as his operational role against Pakistan.
The journalist further alleged that the network operated under the cover of a public relations (PR) firm.
He claimed that in February this year, discussions were underway regarding the publication of what he described as a propaganda article targeting Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir. According to Durrani, the alleged operatives repeatedly demanded financial transaction records by insisting on advance payments.
He also claimed that on February 27, when intense clashes erupted along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, the alleged network transferred an advance payment through Easypaisa and requested unpublished photos and videos from the border area that had not appeared in the media.
Durrani said such requests for sensitive material indicated that the organisation was acting as a front for RAW rather than as a legitimate PR firm.
Durrani said that after maintaining contact with the alleged agent for eight months and gathering evidence, he confronted the individual with his findings. According to the journalist, instead of denying the allegations, the alleged agent offered to help relocate him to the United Kingdom and promised additional benefits.
