Chandigarh: Punjab police on Wednesday claimed to have nabbed a YouTube influencer for leaking sensitive information pertaining to Indian Army deployment to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
Director General of Police (DGP), Punjab, Gaurav Yadav, said that the accused, identified as Jasbir Singh alias Jaan Mahal, 41, a resident of Rupnagar, operated a YouTube channel “JaanMahal Video” with over 11 lakh subscribers, ostensibly posting travel and cooking Vlogs. Accused Jasbir has been found associated with Pakistani Intelligence Operative (PIO) Shakir alias Jutt Randhawa, part of a terror-backed espionage network, he added.
DGP Yadav said that the accused Jasbir also maintained close contact with Haryana-based YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra - already arrested for spying by Haryana Police - and Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish, a Pakistani national and expelled Pak High Commission official.
He said that investigations have revealed that Jasbir attended the Pakistan National Day event in Delhi on Danish’s invitation, where he met Pakistani Army officials and some other vloggers. The accused has also travelled to Pakistan on three occasions including in 2020, 2021 and 2024, and came into direct contact with ISI officers, who subsequently cultivated and recruited him to carry out espionage activities within India, he added.
The DGP said that after Jyoti Malhotra’s arrest, accused Jasbir had attempted to erase all traces of his communications with these PIOs to avoid detection.
Stating that Jasbir Singh had been providing sensitive information about movement of Indian Army and other inside activities of the country to Pakistan following which the police teams launched an intel-based operation and arrested him.
Police said that around 150 Pakistan contacts have been retrieved from the initial mobile phone forensics of the arrested; those included mobile numbers of Pakistan ISI agents, Pakistan High commission officials and other Pak based entities.
In a bid to cover his tracks, the accused had deleted crucial digital evidence, including chats, contact records, and documents exchanged with Pakistani intelligence handlers from his mobile phone.Jyoti Malhotra
The police also held that accused Jasbir had got introduced with Jyoti Malhotra through Pakistan embassy officials at an event hosted by Pakistan embassy in 2024. Both Jasbir and Jyoti also visited Pakistan together.
It may be recalled that Jyoti Malhotra was among 12 people arrested by Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh police over the past about three weeks on the charges of espionage.
