NEW DELHI/SRINAGAR: Jeffrey Scott, a US national, was halted at Srinagar airport after a device resembling a satellite phone was found in his luggage—a potential violation of the Indian Telegraph Act. He was later permitted to depart after authorities determined that he had brought the device as a navigational aid for his trekking trips, unaware of India’s restrictive regulations regarding its possession and usage, as reported by Bharti Jain and Naseer Ganai.
Sources indicated that the device, commonly used by trekkers in the United States, serves as a satellite communicator to navigate remote terrains lacking cellular coverage. Scott, along with his travel companion Haldar Koushik, who is an Indian-origin naturalized US citizen with experience working for the US government, arrived in Kashmir via Delhi and intended to continue to Kathmandu through Delhi.
Scott supposedly had no knowledge of the ban on satellite phones in India and carried the device from the US for trekking purposes in both Jammu and Kashmir and Nepal. A background check conducted by multiple agencies, including the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), cleared Scott of any malicious intent, according to a source.
An official noted that Scott, a resident of Montana, was neither detained nor arrested, and no FIR was filed against him. “The device he possessed is not a traditional satellite phone like Garmin or Thuraya, but a phone-like gadget that also functions as a satellite communicator. After the background investigation confirmed his innocence, he was allowed to leave,” the source added.
According to a police officer, such communication devices are restricted in Jammu and Kashmir, as well as other regions of India, and their usage requires prior authorization.
