BJP MP Nishikant Dubey has urged central agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the National Investigation Agency (NIA), to investigate the financial and professional activities of YouTubers, media influencers, and journalists in the wake of Jyoti Malhotra’s arrest for allegedly sharing sensitive information with a Pakistani citizen.
The BJP MP, in a post on X, called for a comprehensive inquiry into the foreign tours, advertisements, and bank accounts of these individuals, questioning whether some may have been working with foreign powers over the past five years.
“Seeing the exploits of Jyoti Malhotra, who was caught spying for Pakistan, @NIA_India @dir_ed should investigate the foreign tours, advertisements, bank accounts, cars, and houses of such YouTubers, media influencers, Facebook journalists, and unemployed journalists in the last 5 years and whether they are also running an agenda in connivance with some foreign powers. In the last 3 years, Indians have earned 21 thousand crores from YouTube alone, @MIB_India @HMOIndia,” he said.
The arrest of Malhotra, a resident of Hisar, Haryana, has sparked concerns over the potential misuse of digital platforms for espionage. According to Shashank Kumar Sawan, Superintendent of Police (SP) Hisar, Malhotra was being developed as an asset and maintained ties with other YouTube influencers and Pakistani nationals.
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Sawan stated, “She was in touch with other YouTube influencers, and they were also in contact with the Pakistan Information Officers (PIOs). She used to go to Pakistan, like, on sponsored trips. She was in Pakistan before the Pahalgam attack, and the investigation is ongoing to establish any possible linkages.”
According to Hisar DSP Kamaljeet, the police have taken Malhotra on a five-day remand. She has been booked under the Official Secrets Act and relevant sections of the BNS.
Kamaljeet said, “Yesterday, based on inputs that we had, we arrested Jyoti, daughter of Haris Kumar, under the Official Secret Act and BNS 152. We have received some suspicious things after we recovered her mobile and laptop. We have taken her on a five-day remand, and further investigation is on. She was in continuous contact with a Pakistani citizen.”
During the preliminary investigation, the woman reportedly told the police that she visited the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi in 2023 to apply for a visa and met a man named Ahsan-ur-Rahim, alias Danish. She allegedly exchanged numbers with him and subsequently travelled twice to Pakistan, where, according to police sources, she may have been in contact with Pakistani security and intelligence agencies.
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