Haryana-based YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra and five others have been arrested for sharing sensitive information with Pakistani intelligence operatives.
Six Indian nationals — including a Haryana-based travel blogger — have been arrested for allegedly passing sensitive information to Pakistani operatives. The network spanned across Haryana and Punjab, with key operatives acting as agents, financial conduits, and informants.
Among the accused is Jyoti Malhotra, who ran the YouTube channel “Travel with Jo”. Authorities have revealed that she visited Pakistan in 2023 after acquiring a visa through commission agents. During her trip, she developed close ties with Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish, a staff member at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi.
Danish, who has since been declared persona non grata by the government and expelled on May 13, 2025, allegedly introduced Jyoti to multiple Pakistani Intelligence Operatives (PIOs).
On encrypted platforms like WhatsApp, Telegram, and Snapchat, Jyoti remained in touch with operatives, including Shakir alias Rana Shahbaz, whose number she saved as “Jatt Randhawa.”
She allegedly shared sensitive information concerning Indian locations and was actively used to project a positive image of Pakistan on social media. Investigators say she also entered into an intimate relationship with a PIO and even travelled to Bali, Indonesia with him. .
Jyoti has been charged under Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 3, 4, and 5 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923. A written confession has been obtained, and the case has been handed over to the Economic Offences Wing, Hisar.
Apart from Jyoti, another key accused is Guzala, a 32-year-old widow from Malerkotla, Punjab. On February 27, 2025, Guzala visited the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi to apply for a visa.
There, she met Danish and began talking to him regularly. Danish soon persuaded her to switch from WhatsApp to Telegram, claiming it was safer. He gained her trust by promising marriage, initiating a romantic relationship through chats and video calls.
Over the time, Danish started sending money to Guzala — Rs 10,000 on March 7 via the payment app, PhonePe, and Rs 20,000 on March 23 via another payment app, Google Pay. He later instructed her to divert Rs 10,000 to specific recipients in parts: Rs 1,800, Rs 899, Rs 699, and Rs 3,000.
On April 23, Guzala returned to the Pakistan High Commission, accompanied by her friend Banu Nasreena, another widow from Malerkotla. Danish again facilitated their visa, which was issued the next day.
Others arrested in the case include Yameen Mohd from Malerkotla, who collaborated with the Danish in financial dealings and visa-related activities; Devinder Singh Dhillon from Kaithal, Haryana, a Sikh student who was recruited during a pilgrimage to Pakistan and sent videos of Patiala cantonment; and Arman from Nuh, Haryana, who supplied Indian SIM cards, transferred funds, and visited the Defence Expo 2025 on instructions from Pakistan Intelligence Operatives.
Officials have said to India Today that the case is part of a larger espionage operation, where vulnerable individuals from religious and social backgrounds were manipulated through emotional connections, monetary gifts, and fake promises of marriage. The accused have reportedly confessed to their roles, and further investigations are underway.(Via IT)
