Police detained a pigeon on suspicion of being a Pakistani spy after it was caught carrying a message and a “wire-like device”.
The bird was caught by residents in Pathankot district near the India-Pakistan border in the state is now in the custody of Punjab Police.
According to Special Superintendent of Pathankot, Rakesh Kumar Kaushal, the white-feathered, gray-flecked pigeon landed on Ramesh Chand, a barber’s residence.
Suspicions were aroused after finding an address written in Urdu on its wings. It bears a 10 digit phone number, which appears to be a Pakistani.
“Unfortunately, mobile phones rarely work in the border areas,” Chandra said, adding: “My son ran to the nearest police post.”
The barber’s son took the bird to the nearest policeman were an x-rays had been done. “Nothing adverse has been found, but we have kept the bird in our custody,” said SSP Kaushal.
The Urdu part of the message written on its wings has not been able to decode by the investigators as “It’s very dim,” Kaushal said.