The North News
Chandigarh, May 20
The Police have arrested 12 individuals across Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh in a widening espionage investigation that has exposed an alleged network linked to Pakistani intelligence. Among those detained is Haryana-based YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra, whose online presence masked what officials claim were covert ties with Pakistani handlers.
Malhotra is one of several persons now in police custody amid accusations of sharing sensitive military information with agents connected to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). She is believed to have been in contact with Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish, a former Pakistani official posted at the High Commission in New Delhi, who was recently expelled by India. Authorities suspect Malhotra was being cultivated as an intelligence asset during recent military tensions between the two countries, according to media reports.
Another woman, 31-year-old Guzala from Punjab, reportedly met Danish while applying for a Pakistani visa and is said to have visited Pakistan several times, as well as China. Officials are scrutinising her travel history and finances. The suspects come from diverse backgrounds—a postgraduate student, a factory security guard, a self-taught app developer, and even a local quack. In Malerkotla, Punjab, Yameen Mohammad allegedly sold sensitive information to Pakistani agents. A political science student from Patiala, Devender Singh, reportedly shared images of a military cantonment and had travelled to Pakistan late last year, The Hindustan Times reported.
Police in Nuh, Haryana, arrested Arman and Tarif—both accused of leaking strategic photographs, including of Sirsa airport, via WhatsApp and SIM cards allegedly supplied by Pakistani handlers. In another arrest, a 24-year-old guard, Nauman Ilahi, was caught in Panipat for allegedly communicating with an ISI agent using electronic devices seized by investigators.
Authorities say Mohammad Murtaza Ali, arrested in Jalandhar, developed a mobile app to carry out espionage. Shehzad, held by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad, is accused of cross-border smuggling and sharing intelligence with ISI operatives.
The most recent arrests in Gurdaspur—Sukhpreet Singh and Karanbir Singh—highlighted alleged attempts to pass troop movement data from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir during Operation Sindoor, the Indian military’s response to the Pahalgam terrorist attack. Police say the duo received Rs 1 lakh from Pakistani handlers and may have been part of a parallel drug trafficking network, India Today reported.
DIG Satinder Singh stated that many of the suspects were “activated” by ISI operatives following the Kashmir attack, suggesting a coordinated effort to exploit civil networks for intelligence purposes. A case has been registered under the Official Secrets Act.
