In a shocking twist, Indian YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra, who had presented herself as a spiritual pilgrim making her way through India’s most hallowed religious landmarks, finds herself in the middle of a high-profile spy case. Police have arrested Malhotra on charges of spying for Pakistan, and her online trail filled with pilgrimage material has left national security in serious doubt.
Tracing the Devotional Footsteps
Since 2023, Jyoti Malhotra recorded pilgrimages to 15 significant religious shrines in India. They included Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj, where she took a 42-minute video of her trip from Delhi. She also went to Kedarnath, Badrinath, Ayodhya, and the Golden Temple, sharing content that captured not just religious zeal but also complex travel routes, logistics, and crowd dynamics.
She had visited Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi last July, and Banke Bihari Temple in September. Her travel schedule took her from Kailash Mansarovar to Chamundeswari Temple in Karnataka, and even Devprayag in Uttarakhand. This trend of visits is now being suspected, particularly in the wake of her encounter with Pakistani High Commission official Ehsan-ur-Rahim, alias Danish, in a 2023 visit to Delhi.
FIR & Espionage Charges on Jyoti Malhotra
The FIR, filed at the Civil Lines police station in Hisar, names Rahim as a suspected handler from Pakistan’s intelligence agency. Malhotra’s link to him—and her extensive travel record—has raised questions over whether her videos veil intelligence gathering activities. On 13 May 2025, the Indian government declared Rahim persona non grata and expelled him.
Holy Sites where Jyoti Malhotra Travel
The case has taken a darker turn since the Pahalgam terror attack. The Indian Army confirmed that the Golden Temple in Amritsar, which Malhotra had visited in 2023, was one of the main targets of a foiled Pakistani aerial attack during Operation Sindoor on May 7–8.
Although the Indian Army thwarted the drone and missile attack, the attack puts Malhotra’s visit in an even scarier light.
Security Agencies on High Alert
Agencies are currently looking into whether the videos of Malhotra, some of which potentially featured sensitive crowd and logistical information, may have benefited foreign intelligence. “Religious travel could have been a cover,” an intelligence source hinted, indicating possible further arrests in the next few weeks.
As India increases counter-intelligence efforts, the case of Jyoti Malhotra questions the important questions regarding digital influencers, open-source monitoring, and the new face of contemporary espionage.
