Hisar, May 18 — Hisar YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra (33) has been arrested on charges of espionage, with police alleging she was being “developed as an asset” by Pakistani intelligence operatives.
Malhotra, who runs a travel channel called ‘Travel with JO’, was arrested on Friday from New Aggarsain Extension and has since been remanded to five-day police custody, said Hisar SP Shashank Kumar Sawan while addressing mediapersons on Sunday.
“She did not have direct access to defence or military operations,” the SP clarified, “but she was in contact with Pakistani Intelligence Officers (PIOs) and was likely being groomed to push enemy narratives online.”
During the recent four-day military confrontation between India and Pakistan—sparked by the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam—Malhotra allegedly remained in touch with a Pakistani officer posted at the High Commission in New Delhi, who was later declared persona non grata and expelled on May 13.
According to the FIR registered at Civil Lines Police Station on May 16, Malhotra first came into contact with Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish at the Pakistan High Commission while seeking a visa in 2023. She then visited Pakistan twice, met Danish’s associate Ali Ahwan, and stayed under arrangements made by them.
SP Sawan said that she also visited China once and had links with other social media influencers allegedly in touch with PIOs. “This is also a form of warfare—digital narrative warfare—where influencers are recruited to shape public opinion,” he added.
Her financial records, travel history, and digital devices are under forensic scrutiny, with Central agencies also involved in the probe. Authorities are trying to determine the extent of information she may have shared with foreign handlers.
Her arrest follows a similar espionage case in Malerkotla, Punjab, where two people, including a woman, were recently held for links to the same Pakistani officer.
Read more: YouTuber Among Six Held in Haryana for Alleged Espionage for Pakistan
