Ashley Tellis Arrested In US: What Does It Mean For India? Exclusive From Intelligence Sources

Last Updated:October 15, 2025, 15:01 IST

Ashley Tellis, a well-known US scholar on India, has been charged and arrested for retaining classified information and for allegedly meeting Chinese officials

Born in Mumbai, Tellis studied at St. Xavier’s College before pursuing advanced degrees in political science at the University of Chicago. (Carnegie Website)

The arrest of Ashley Tellis in the US shows the depth of Chinese penetration in the Amercian departments, said top intelligence sources.

Ashley Tellis, a well-known US scholar on India, has been charged and arrested for allegedly retaining classified information and for allegedly meeting Chinese officials.

The announcement on his arrest was made by US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Lindsey Halligan, who said 64-year-old Tellis of Vienna has been arrested and charged by criminal complaint with the unlawful retention of national defence information, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 793(e).

According to AFP, the State Department confirmed that Tellis was arrested on October 11, the same day the affidavit said he was due to fly to Rome. “We are fully focused on protecting the American people from all threats, foreign and domestic. The charges as alleged in this case represent a grave risk to the safety and security of our citizens," Halligan said. “The facts and the law in this case are clear, and we will continue following them to ensure that justice is served," he added.

Intelligence sources said, “This is typically the Cold War time template where the Chinese have been able to adapt and establish deep access in the US systems using third country origin people. Interestingly, as earlier perceived, the access has not remained limited to Chinese origin nationals. This case opens a Pandora’s box on suspicion."

It is also a lesson for Indian security agencies to closely monitor access of Indian origin people in Indian systems, they said.

Tellis, a US citizen originally from India, is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. His work includes attention to international security and US foreign and defence policy with a special focus on Asia and the Indian subcontinent.

Tellis, who has worked in or advised the US government for more than two decades, was found to have kept more than 1,000 pages of top-secret or secret documents in his home, AFP quoted a criminal affidavit. If convicted, Tellis is subject to a maximum of 10 years of imprisonment, up to a $250,000 fine, a $100 special assessment and forfeiture, an official release by the US Attorney’s Office mentioned.

With AFP Inputs

Manoj Gupta

Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18

Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18

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