Hisar court extends custody of social media influencer Jyoti Malhotra by two weeks

Chandigarh, June 23 (IANS) A court in Haryana's Hisar on Monday extended the judicial custody by two weeks of social media influencer Jyoti Malhotra, who was arrested last month on charges of espionage.

The police arrested Malhotra, who ran a YouTube channel ‘Travel with JO’, on May 16.

She was booked under provisions of the Official Secrets Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). She appeared before the court virtually.

Malhotra’s lawyer Kumar Mukesh told the media: “Her judicial remand has been extended by 14 days and the next date of hearing has been fixed by the court on July 7.”

After Jyoti Malhotra, Punjab Police claimed to have unearthed a critical espionage network linked to another YouTuber, Jasbir Singh, a resident of Rupnagar.

Jasbir Singh, who operates a YouTube channel called 'JaanMahal', has been found associated with Pakistani intelligence operative Shakir, alias Jutt Randhawa, part of a terror-backed espionage network.

He also maintained close contact with Haryana-based Jyoti Malhotra and Ehsan-ur-Rahim, alias Danish, a Pakistani national and expelled Pakistan High Commission official, Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav informed on X.

Investigations have revealed that Jasbir attended the Pakistan National Day event in Delhi on Danish's invitation, where he met Pakistani army officials and bloggers.

He travelled to Pakistan on three occasions (2020, 2021, 2024), and his electronic devices contained multiple Pakistan-based numbers, now under detailed forensic scrutiny, said the DGP.

After Jyoti Malhotra's arrest, Jasbir attempted to erase all traces of his communications with these Pakistani intelligence operatives to avoid detection.

Also Counter-Intelligence Punjab, in a joint operation with Tarn Taran police, had arrested a man linked to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) for sharing sensitive information concerning army movements during Operation Sindoor.

The accused was identified as Gagandeep Singh, alias Gagan, a resident of Tarn Taran town.

DGP Yadav had said preliminary investigation has revealed that Gagandeep Singh was in direct contact with Pakistan-based Khalistani supporter Gopal Singh Chawla for past five years, through whom he was introduced to Pakistani intelligence operatives.

Investigations also revealed that the accused had been sharing classified information, including troop deployments, strategic locations, and army movements during Operation Sindoor, posing a serious threat to national security.

The DGP had said police teams have recovered two mobile devices from the possession of the accused, containing sensitive intelligence that he shared with the Pakistani intelligence operatives, as well as the details of over 20 ISI contacts. The accused also received payments from operatives via Indian channels.

--IANS

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