Who is Jyoti Malhotra, the Haryana YouTuber at the centre of Pakistani spy network

Jyoti Malhotra aka Jyoti Rani, a popular travel YouTuber known for her channel ‘Travel with JO’, has been arrested on Saturday on charges of espionage for Pakistan. The arrest allegedly described as a larger, deeply embedded spy network operating across northern India.

The 33-year-old, who hails from Hisar in Haryana and commands a following of over 3.77 lakh subscribers on YouTube and about 1.5 lakh on Instagram. She has so far produced nearly 500 videos for her YouTube channel with over 53 lakh views and describes herself as a “nomadic Leo girl wanderer”, “Haryanvi Punjabi” and “purane khyalo ki modern ladki” (a modern girl with a traditional outlook).

She launched her channel in 2011 and is known to produce videos related to travel to several destinations in India as well as Pakistan.

Also read: Haryana YouTuber arrested on charges of spying for Pakistan

In a YouTube shorts posted in March, Jyoti detailed her journey to Pakistan, saying she had gone to visit Hindu pilgrimage sites.

Following inputs from Central Intelligence Agencies and an inquiry by the CIA staff of Hisar police, she was arrested from her residence at New Agarsain Extension. The police booked her under Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and Section 3, 4 and 5 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923. Her confession during interrogation led to her being remanded to police custody for five days. The case has since been transferred to the Economic Offences Wing for further investigation.

Behind her digital persona as a travel vlogger, Jyoti is suspected of participating in a coordinated influence operation. Through her channel, ‘Travel with JO’, she is accused of subtly promoting a positive image of Pakistan.

This case comes at a time of heightened tensions between India and Pakistan, following the Pahalgam terror attack, where 26 civilians were killed. Survivors reported that Hindu men were specifically targeted. The attack was claimed by Lashkar-e-Taiba, a banned terror outfit long accused of receiving support from Pakistan.

In retaliation, India launched ‘Operation Sindoor’, striking nine terror infrastructure sites across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).