Top India expert in US accused of removing classified docs, Chinese links: Report

Ashley Tellis (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

Top expert on India in the United States, Ashley Tellis, described in court filings as a longtime State Department figure and South Asia expert, is facing accusations that he mishandled sensitive U.S. materials and engaged in undisclosed meetings with officials from China, reported Fox News.

The report citing federal prosecutors said according to an affidavit from the Justice Department that Tellis allegedly removed classified files from secure locations and took them to his home in Vienna, where investigators later recovered “more than a thousand pages” stamped “TOP SECRET” and “SECRET.”

According to the report, authorities said that Tellis, who had top-secret clearance, also worked as a contractor with the Office of Net Assessment at the Pentagon and served as a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

He had previously joined the State Department in 2001.

As per the report, the court records claim that on September 12, Tellis had a colleague at a government site print classified material, and later on September 25, he allegedly obtained U.S. Air Force documents concerning military aircraft capabilities.

Prosecutors contend that these actions form the basis of the unlawful retention of national defense information charge, the report said.

Investigators have also been cited to say that Tellis held multiple meetings with Chinese government officials. One encounter reportedly occurred in September 2022 at a restaurant in Virginia, during which Tellis was observed carrying a manila envelope.

Another took place on April 11, 2023, where, according to authorities, Tellis and Chinese officials were “talking about Iranian-Chinese relations and emerging technologies” while dining. At an additional gathering on September 2, Tellis allegedly received a “gift bag” during dinner with Chinese representatives, court filings state.

Prosecutors describe Tellis as an unpaid senior adviser to the State Department during the period in question.

Fox News Digital reported that requests for statements sent by to the State Department, the Department of War (the terminology used in court papers for the Office of Net Assessment affiliation), and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace have not yet received responses.

Tellis has not made any public comment on the allegations yet.

BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya reacted to the news by Fox News Digital on X and attacked the Opposition saying "the forces working against India are beginning to unravel in ways few could have imagined."

"This explains why Ashley Tellis, often cited and celebrated by India’s opposition, spoke so frequently and harshly against us," he wrote on X.