1. WHO IS JYOTI RANI?
Jyoti Malhotra (also known as Jyoti Rani) is a 33-year-old popular travel blogger and YouTuber. She runs a YouTube channel called ‘Travel With Jo‘, boasting over 3.79 lakh subscribers. The influencer used to regularly update her channel, posting travel vlogs from India and abroad, including Pakistan. She also has a massive following of 1.35 lakh people on Instagram.
In her own words, Jyoti is a ‘Haryanvi+Punjabi’ and a ‘purane khyalo ki modern ladki’ (a modern girl with old-fashioned thoughts).
2. ALL ABOUT JYOTI RANI’S ARREST
Police in Haryana’s Hisar district arrested Jyoti Rani on Friday on espionage allegations after receiving inputs from central agencies. She has been charged of spying for Pakistan and sharing sensitive information with Pakistan intelligence that could compromise national security. She has been booked under Sections 3, 4, and 5 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923, and Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Following her arrest, she confessed to the charges.
Jyoti is among six individuals arrested in a broader espionage operation involving passing sensitive information and logistical support to Pakistani intelligence.
Notably, the arrests come after the recent conflict between India and Pakistan. India had launched Operation Sindoor against Pakistan after the Pahalgam attack, wherein 26 tourists were killed.
3. JYOTI RANI’S CONNECTION TO PAKISTANI HANDLERS
During her interrogation, Jyoti Rani told officials that in 2023 she visited the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi to get a visa to travel to Pakistan. It was during this visit that she met a man named Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish, a staffer at the Pakistan High Commission. The two began communicating regularly afterward.
Ehsan-ur-Rahim was an ISI operative posted at the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi under diplomatic cover. He was declared as Persona Non Grata over espionage charges on May 13 and asked to leave India within 24 hours for his espionage involvement.
As per the FIR, after acquiring her visa, Jyoti Rani visited Pakistan, where she met an acquaintance of Danish who introduced her to Pakistani intelligence officials.
She visited Pakistan multiple times in 2023 and also traveled to Bali, Indonesia, with one of the Pakistani operatives, indicating deep involvement beyond mere communication.
4. ENCRYPTED MESSAGES & CONCEALED CONTACTS OF JYOTI RANI
Jyoti Rani allegedly used WhatsApp, Telegram, and Snapchat for communication and saved Pakistani contacts under false names like ‘Jatt Randhawa’ to evade detection. Investigators believe that this deliberate digital camouflage points to pre-planned and long-term espionage operations.
5. TASKED TO PRESENT +VE IMAGE OF PAK ONLINE
Investigators allege she was tasked by her Pakistani handlers to create content that portrayed Pakistan positively, influencing her large Indian audience as part of a coordinated propaganda effort.
Hisar SP Shashank Kumar Sawan said, “Modern warfare is not only fought on the border. The Pakistan Information Officers are trying to recruit some social media influencers, and they use that to push their narrative.”
6. CONTENT OF JYOTI RANI’S YOUTUBE VIDEOS ON PAK
In a video posted in March 2024, Jyoti Rani can be seen warmly praising the arrangements at the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi during an Iftar dinner. In the video, she expressed her repeated interest in visiting Pakistan.
Later, he YouTube channel was flooded with videos of her trip to Pakistan, starting with ‘Indian girl going to Pakistan for 10 days.”
‘Pakistan ki Crazy Bus Journey’, ‘Meeting Pakistanis’, ‘Indian Girl in Heeramandi of Lahore’ and ‘Crossing Wagah Border’ were some of the videos she posted from her visit.
She also shared a video from Gurudwara Sri Nankana Sahib in Pakistan.
7. BEING DEVELOPED AS PAKISTANI ASSET
Pakistani intelligence operatives were developing Jyoti as an asset, police said. She had no direct access to military intelligence, but her connections with other influencers made her a potential tool for narrative warfare, police added.
8. WHAT WAS SHE UP TO DURING INDIA-PAK CONFLICT?
Jyoti was reportedly in contact with the aforementioned Pakistani officer Ehsan-ur-Rahim, who was stationed at the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi during the recent India-Pakistan conflict.
9. JYOTI RANI’S FINANCES
Police are analysing her financial transactions and other details. “Her travel details are defying her total income,” police said.
10. WHAT’S NEXT FOR JYOTI RANI?
Jyoti has been remanded to police custody for five days, with the Economic Offences Wing continuing the investigation. The authorities are analysing her digital devices and communications to determine the full extent of her activities and network.
Meanwhile, another YouTuber named Priyanka Senapati has come under the scanner of Odisha Police for her alleged links with Jyoti. Priyanka, who is also a travel vlogger, had visited Pakistan a few months ago.
Also Read- All You Need to Know About Operation Sindoor
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