Indian YouTuber arrested for allegedly spying for Pakistan

Operatives of Indian police force have arrested a local YouTuber, Jyoti Malhotra, for allegedly spying for Pakistan. 

Malhotra, a travel influencer from the Northern Indian state of Haryana, was reported to have travelled frequently to the bordering country, the last being in March 2025. 

The influencer’s arrest followed that of Ahsan-ur-Rahim, the Pakistan High Commission official who was expelled from India earlier in May for indulging in activities “not in keeping with his official status in India.”

According to the police, the influencer, who is self-regarded on social media as a “Modern girl with old ideas” with about 377,000 subscribers on YouTube and 133,000 followers on Instagram, was allegedly in touch with the expelled official.

Her father has denied the allegations of the YouTuber spying for Pakistan, stating that she went to Pakistan after acquiring the necessary permissions.

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The BBC reports that questions have arisen about how she funds her global travel videos. The operatives have also claimed that she was in touch with “Pakistani intelligence operatives” and a Pakistani Citizen. 

Following the claims, Shashank Kumar Sawan, the superintendent of police in Haryana’s Hisar district, told the ANI news agency that the influencer is being investigated for suspected connections to the Pahalgam attack. 

Sawan stated that they have leads on other collaborations with the influencer who, according to the BBC, “does not have direct access to any military or defence information.”

“She was in touch with other YouTube influencers… She used to go to Pakistan on sponsored trips,” he said.

Following the expulsion of the High Commission official, an Indian embassy staff member in Islamabad was laid off for indulging in activities non-conforming to his “privileged status.”

In a registered police complaint, the content creator, on a quest for a travel visa to the neighbouring country, had met the expelled official for the first time in 2023 when she had visited the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi.

With her last video on Pakistan published in March, where she was seen attending a Ramadan dinner in the Pakistan High Commission, Delhi, other videos from Pakistan highlighted her visits to Hindu and Sikh temples, popular local markets and interactions with natives.

Note that arrests in India and Pakistan on “spying” are common, and Ms. Malhotra’s arrest immediately follows events of military tensions between the bordering countries earlier in May. 

Following a deadly attack in Kashmir, India reportedly struck inside Pakistan on May 7, a claim Pakistan denied. After four days of intense clashes, a ceasefire was agreed on May 10, with US President Donald Trump announcing the truce.

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