Mumbai: In Operation Deep Manifest, India’s financial intelligence apparatus has uncovered a cross-border economic sabotage strategy allegedly orchestrated by Pakistan. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has flagged the illegal routing of Pakistan-origin products including dry dates, rock salt, and certain spices that were illicitly routed into Indian markets via Dubai using falsified documentation. The operation points to a calculated effort to circumvent Indian trade restrictions and facilitate black money generation through under-invoicing.
Investigations have revealed that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) is the shadow force backing this network, engineering a sophisticated supply chain to destabilize Indian economic defenses. At the heart of the operation lies a covert funnel, through which goods originating in Pakistan are allegedly misdeclared or re-labelled in Dubai, allowing them to bypass official trade restrictions and enter India undetected. The ISI rakes in huge profits from these shadowy transactions and uses the funds for activities against India.
In the backdrop of the investigation lies a Rs 9 crore consignment of dry dates recently seized by Indian authorities, brought the network into sharp focus. Investigators traced the origin to Khairpur district in Pakistan’s Sindh province, renowned for its premium Aseel dry dates. With its optimal climate and low-cost labor force, Khairpur dominates Pakistan’s dry date export ecosystem.
According to sources within the DRI and allied agencies, all 39 seized container consignments have been traced to traders operating from Khairpur Khajoor Mandi and Shikarpur Khajoor Mandi. These traders are suspected to be connected with the Khairpur Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which allegedly played a facilitative role in re-routing the goods through Dubai under false UAE-origin labels.
Officials believe that these traders are merely fronts for a deeper ISI-led conspiracy, one that leverages Dubai’s trading ecosystem and the cover of shell import-export firms. These UAE-based companies, set up by ISI-trained operatives as early as 2022-23, function as conduits to funnel Pakistani goods into India under the guise of UAE-origin products.
DRI seizes Pakistan-origin goods misdeclared as UAE imports at Nhava Sheva Port under Operation Deep Manifest |
According to India’s financial intelligence apparatus, the elaborate network uncovered under Operation Deep Manifest appears to revive and exploit the pre-2019 “battar” system, a loosely regulated barter-style trade arrangement between India and Pakistan that allowed the exchange of goods without formal monetary transactions. This informal mechanism was dismantled by India following the February 2019 Pulwama terror attack, with authorities imposing a steep 200% duty on Pakistani imports, effectively crippling official bilateral trade. In response, intelligence officials believe the ISI re-strategize, shifting the battlefield to Dubai and Sharjah, to exploit the UAE’s commercial infrastructure and evade Indian enforcement mechanisms.
As Pakistan’s economy teetered on the brink of collapse in the post-COVID era, its formal trade came under severe strain. Intelligence sources claim the ISI intervened, re-engineering its trade strategy, shifting the battlefield to Dubai and Sharjah. With quiet support from the Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and the Sindh Chamber of Commerce, the ISI reportedly activated a covert trade corridor designed to sneak Pakistan-origin goods into India under a new disguise. By 2023, Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) had, through strategic talent spotting, quietly deployed a selected team of trained agents in the United Arab Emirates (UAE),and arm them with a web of shell companies posing as legitimate import-export businesses.
DRI seizes Pakistan-origin goods misdeclared as UAE imports at Nhava Sheva Port under Operation Deep Manifest |
These ghost companies didn’t just operate on paper. They actively moved Pakistani dry dates, almonds, and other goods into Indian markets, camouflaged as UAE-origin consignments. Indian importers were drawn by ultra-low prices and high margins. Investigators believe several Indian firms became silent partners, aiding syndicates in bypassing customs scrutiny in return for sizable profits.
Investigations uncovered a shadow hawala network through which ISI-backed trade empires earned crores in illegal monthly remittances from India. Officials estimate the scale of this underground economy to exceed Rs 500 crore. Intelligence inputs suggest that a portion of these funds is being funneled to finance anti-India activities, including propaganda campaigns, sleeper cell operations, and cyber-disinformation efforts. Officials have termed it a “strategic economic attack,” warning that the operation poses a direct threat to India’s financial and national security infrastructure.
Following the Pahalgam terror attacks, India imposed a complete ban on the direct or indirect import or transit of goods from Pakistan, effective May 2, 2025. However, the DRI has flagged repeated attempts by syndicates to bypass the ban using falsified origin details and misdeclared documents.
Investigators found that shipping papers, including the Bill of Lading, were manipulated to reflect UAE as the country of origin, effectively erasing the Pakistani trail. officials say, this as a deliberate attempt to deceive Indian customs and skirt national restrictions.
As the probe intensifies, the DRI and allied agencies are tracking shell companies, forged invoices, and hawala networks linked to these transactions.
Officials warn that this is not merely a case of illegal trade; it could be part of a larger economic warfare blueprint targeting India’s financial sovereignty.
