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Jyoti Malhotra | |
|---|---|
| Born | |
| Occupation(s) | YouTuber, travel vlogger |
| Years active | 2019–2025 |
| Known for | YouTube channel Travel with JO; arrest in 2025 for alleged espionage |
| Website | Travel with JO on YouTube |
| Criminal information | |
| Criminal status | In judicial custody |
| Criminal charge | OS Act: Spying and Wrongful communication of information BNS: Endangering sovereignty, unity and integrity of India |
Date apprehended | 16 May 2025 |
| Imprisoned at | Hisar Central Prison |
Jyoti Malhotra is an Indian travel vlogger who ran the YouTube channel Travel with JO.
She was arrested in May 2025 under the under the Official Secrets Act amid the 2025 India–Pakistan conflict. She is accused of espionage, passing sensitive information to operatives of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). [1] Her arrest drew widespread national media coverage. [2] [3]
Malhotra is from Hisar, Haryana, and is known for her travel content published under the YouTube channel Travel with JO, which had more than 400,000 subscribers as of 2025. She also had a following of more than 130,000 on Instagram. [4] Her travel history includes trips to Pakistan, Bhutan, Thailand, Nepal, Indonesia (Bali) and China.
Malhotra was arrested by the Haryana Police in May 2025 and booked for espionage under the Section 3 (Penalties for spying) and 5 (Wrongful communication, etc., of information) of the Official Secrets Act and Section 152 (Act endangering sovereignty, unity and integrity of India) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. [5] Her custody has been extended multiple times by courts in Haryana to allow forensic examination of her electronic devices and financial records. [6] Police officials have stated that while she admitted to being in contact with Inter-Services Intelligence-linked individuals, no evidence has surfaced indicating she accessed military secrets or had links to terrorist organizations. [7] [8] In 2023, Malhotra reportedly visited the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi for a visa, where she met a staffer identified as ISI agent Ehsan-ur-Rahim a.k.a. "Danish" who had been expelled as a persona non grata, also for espionage, in May 2025. Danish had reportedly recruited Indian social media influencers, such as Malhotra and Jasbir Singh of the JaanMahal Video YouTube travel channel, for the ISI. [9] [10] [4] According to investigators, she allegedly maintained communications with multiple Pakistani intelligence operatives and visited Pakistan at least three times between 2023 and 2025. Reports also indicate she traveled to Bali with one of her Pakistani contacts. [11]
She is alleged to have leaked non-military but sensitive information during the May 2025 India–Pakistan conflict (part of the 2025 India–Pakistan crisis which followed the April 2025 Pahalgam attack in Jammu and Kashmir). [12] [13] [8]
The case received national media attention and ignited discussions about honey trapping, the vulnerability of influencers and cybersecurity in India. [11] [14] [15]