Welcome to another insightful episode of Jist Breaking Down Podcast, hosted by Mukul Singh Chauhan. In today's episode, we have Kallol Bhattacherjee, renowned journalist and author, as our special guest. Kallol's  book, A Singular Spy: The Untold Story of Coomar Narain, published by Bloomsbury, delves into one of India's most fascinating and underreported espionage cases. 


In this gripping conversation, Mukul and Kallol break down the story of Coomar Narain, a mysterious figure who allegedly led one of the most significant spy rings in Indian history, shaking the Rajiv Gandhi government in the 1980s. The scandal involved highranking officials, secret military operations, and political figures, bringing India's intelligence and political machinery under scrutiny.


Kallol Bhattacherjee sheds light on how Narain, a private intelligence operator, managed to infiltrate key government operations with ease. He discusses the impact of the scandal on Indian politics and its relevance to today's intelligence landscape. The conversation also touches upon how the case reflected a turning point in India's bureaucratic and espionage systems, as the country was on the brink of entering the digital age.


Don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe to Jist for more thoughtprovoking content. Hit the notification bell so you never miss an episode!


Host: Mukul Singh Chauhan  
Camera: Ajaz | Farhan Haidar  
Video Editor: Srish Vaish
Producer: Ekanki Kasnia  
Sound: Sandeep Pandey  

Chapters

00:00 12:43: Introduction
12:44 17:46: The story of how Coomar Narain became central to India’s biggest spy case
17:47 27:00: The role of alcohol in leaking India’s sensitive information, and how differences within the South Bloc enabled Coomar Narain to collaborate with Maniklal
27:01 30:43: Coomar Narain’s wife, Geetanjali
30:44 36:55: How Coomar Narain’s influence extended to Poland, Germany, the Soviet Union, and French embassies, and how this benefitted his work while posing significant risks to the country
36:56 45:43: How was Coomar Narain’s scandal exposed?
45:44 55:45: The involvement of political figures in the Coomar Narain scandal and Narain’s life in jail
55:46 1:03:48: The changes in India’s security measures regarding sensitive information after the scandal


#CoomarNarain #Spy #IndianHistory #RajivGandhi #JistBreakingDownPodcast #KallolBhattacherjee #Jist #IndiraGandhi