Espionage case: Arrested Haryana YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra linked to expelled Pakistani official - 10 points

NEW DELHI: Haryana YouTuber and travel vlogger Jyoti Malhotra was arrested on Saturday in a case related to spying for Pakistan. She has been accused of sharing sensitive information with an official at Pakistan high commission who was expelled on charges of espionage on May 13.

Her YouTube channel, which features a total of 487 videos, includes several documenting her visits to Pakistan, with titles such as “Indian Girl in Pakistan,” “Indian Girl Exploring Lahore,” “Indian Girl at Katas Raj Temple,” and “Indian Girl Rides Luxury Bus in Pakistan.”
The arrest comes amid tensions between India and Pakistan over Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians on April 22.

Here are ten key points regarding the case:

Jyoti, who runs a YouTube channel with 3,77,000 subscribers, is accused of communicating with a Pakistani employee at the Pakistan high commission in Delhi. On May 13, India expelled that Pakistani official on charges of espionage.

The police said that she maintained contact with Pakistani handlers and allegedly transmitted sensitive information through messaging platforms such as WhatsApp, Telegram, and Snapchat.

She made contact with Ehsan-ur-Rahim, also known as Danish, at the Pakistan high commission in 2023 while applying for a visa to visit the neighboring country, according to the FIR.

She met Danish multiple times at the Pakistan high commission in Delhi and was reportedly in contact with Pakistani intelligence operatives, the FIR said.

She traveled to Pakistan twice, met Danish’s acquaintance Ali Ahwan, who arranged her stay there. Ahwan also facilitated her meetings with Pakistani security and intelligence officials, including Shakir and Rana Shahbaz. To avoid raising suspicion, Jyoti saved Shahbaz’s mobile number under the name ‘Jatt Randhawa.’

A photo posted by Jyoti Malhotra on March 22, 2025, showed her alongside two other Indian YouTubers, with a caption claiming they were at the Pakistan high commission.

According to police, Jyoti admitted to sharing sensitive information with Pakistani intelligence operatives and disguising their contacts with misleading names to evade detection. Officials said that her sustained communication with these operatives constitutes a violation of the Official Secrets Act and poses a serious threat to national security.

She has been charged under applicable provisions of the Official Secrets Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita by Civil Lines police in Hisar.

She was arrested just a day after a 25-year-old postgraduate student, suspected of connections with Pakistani intelligence operatives, was taken into custody in Kaithal.

Meanwhile, Nauman Ilahi, a 24-year-old from Panipat district, was also arrested on charges of allegedly providing sensitive information to contacts in Pakistan.