Jyoti Malhotra of Hisar, Haryana was arrested by Indian authorities on charges of espionage on May 17th 2025 and has been featured on YouTube as “Travel with JO.” She is believed to have shared sensitive data with Pakistani intelligence operatives through sharing. She The People + 9 Deccan Chronicle +9 Outlook India. Civil Lines police in Hisar made the arrest, which follows intelligence inputs about Malhotra’s alleged espionage activities, on Saturday. Malhotra has been booked under both the Official Secrets Act and relevant sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Outlook India (@OutlookIndia), The Times of India (+4), Hindustan Times (+2) and Deccan Chronicle have reported on her case. Investigations indicate that Malhotra made contact with Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish, an official employed at Pakistan High Commission New Delhi who was later expelled for suspected spying activities by Indian authorities on May 13. Danish is thought to have played an instrumental role in helping Malhotra travel to Pakistan as well as meeting Pakistani intelligence operatives during her travels there, according to reports in Hindustan Times and TimelineDaily (TIMELINEDAILY was added later as well). Consequently, she developed relationships with them in both cases (HT/Outlook India +4) which allowed her to travel in comfort. Malhotra visited Pakistan twice, during which she is said to have met with individuals linked to Pakistani intelligence, sharing classified military information through encrypted communication platforms such as WhatsApp, Telegram and Snapchat – officials believe this posed potential risks to India’s national security. She allegedly shared this classified military knowledge via TimelineDaily’s True Scoop @mathrubhumi with individuals associated with their intelligence unit. Malhotra allegedly shared classified military knowledge through these platforms for sharing through WhatsApp Telegram Snapchat This arrest forms part of a wider crackdown on Pakistan-related espionage activities in India, with two individuals from Malerkotla in Punjab being detained for allegedly providing sensitive information to a Pakistani diplomat posted at Delhi High Commission. These arrests demonstrate ongoing efforts by Indian authorities to dismantle any spy networks operating within their borders. For more details please see The Hindustan Times’ outlook India report and TimelineDaily’s timelineDaily+2 story (linked here). Malhotra’s YouTube channel, “Travel with JO,” boasts over 377,000 subscribers and features travel vlogs from various countries such as Pakistan and China. Her online presence had previously drawn criticism due to her behavior on trip; particularly her conduct towards locals during travels in China where she faced backlash for disrespectful conduct towards them, NewsX World +8, True Scoop +8 as well as Hindustan Times+8, Tamil Murasu +7 as well as Indiatimes both reported criticism for disrespectful behavior toward locals (NewsX World +8, True Scoop +8 True Scoop +8 Indiatimes +8) +7 This case has raised serious concerns regarding foreign intelligence agencies’ potential misuse of digital platforms and social media to gather sensitive information, with authorities now focused on tracking Malhotra’s interactions and what she may have compromised; further investigations are also taking place to identify individuals involved with Malhotra as part of a possible espionage network. Malhotra was taken into police custody for five days of further interrogation due to his serious charges and importance of protecting national security against potential threats. Officials stress the gravity of these allegations against Malhotra.
