Observing that “there can be no compromise with national security”, the Supreme Court has dismissed a petition filed by YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra accused of espionage and sharing sensitive information with operatives linked to Pakistan intelligence agencies.
A bench comprising Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma refused to interfere with the March 7 order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which refused to grant her bail. Dismissing Malhotra’s plea challenging a Punjab and Haryana high court order denying her bail on March 7, a bench of justices Dipankar Datta and SC Sharma termed the allegations against her “very serious”.
“These are very serious charges against you and any defence you have is a subject matter of trial,” the bench observed.The vlogger, who ran a YouTube channel “Travel-with-Jo", was arrested on May 16, 2025, following 'Operation Sindoor'. She is named as an accused in the FIR registered by Hisar police for offences punishable under Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923, and Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
It was alleged that she had travelled to Pakistan with the assistance of officials from the Pakistan High Commission at Delhi, and during her visit to the country, she met officials of Pakistan's security and intelligence agencies. The State further alleged that after returning to India, the petitioner remained in touch with these individuals through platforms such as WhatsApp, Snapchat and Telegram and passed on sensitive information to them.
The High Court, observing that the allegations are of a serious nature, had denied her bail, noting that there was prima facie evidence of the petitioner indulging in anti-national activities and passing on sensitive information to the neighbouring country.Malhotra’s counsel argued that she had been arrested on May 16 last year and had remained in custody for more than a year despite having no previous criminal antecedents.Malhotra, a resident of Hisar in Haryana, is accused of passing sensitive information to Pakistani intelligence officials. She operated a YouTube channel titled ‘Travel-with-Jo’.
A case under the Official Secrets Act and Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), relating to acts endangering the sovereignty and integrity of the country, was registered against her after the Haryana Police allegedly gathered evidence of her meetings with an official at the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi.According to investigators, Malhotra later travelled to Pakistan and met officers linked to Pakistan’s security and intelligence agencies, whose names she allegedly disclosed during questioning.
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