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India Today
3 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
'Feels like home': Interview video of Indian 'spy' in Pak alerted agencies
Kasim (marked in red circle), the man arrested for allegedly spying for Pakistan's ISI, is seen in a YouTube video posted by a Pakistani media outlet. (Screengrab) Kasim arrested from Rajasthan for spying for Pakistan Radicalised several individuals in India Kasim's brother Asim also arrested for espionage activities The man arrested by Delhi Police for allegedly spying for Pakistan visited the country twice in a year to receive training from his ISI handlers, officials told India Today. That Kasim, a resident of Rajasthan, visited Pakistan was confirmed after he was seen in a YouTube video speaking to a Pakistani media outlet. Kasim was arrested in the Deeg area of Mewat in Rajasthan on Thursday. The video, posted by the YouTube channel 'Rehbar-e-Mewat', shows Kasim telling the news anchor that it "felt like home" in Pakistan. "Mr Kasim, welcome to Pakistan once again. How does it feel to be back in Pakistan?" the anchor is heard asking him. To this, Kasim replies, "It feels like home. I get so much love and affection here that it brings me back so soon. I am back here in less than three months due to your people's love and affection". According to officials, Kasim visited Pakistan for the first time in August 2024 and again in March 2025, staying for about 90 days in total. During these visits, he received espionage training from his ISI handlers and senior operatives. Investigations revealed that Kasim was sending Indian SIM cards to Pakistan, which were then used by Pakistani Intelligence Operatives (PIOs) to contact Indians via WhatsApp for gathering sensitive military and government-related information. Kasim is also alleged to have radicalised several individuals in India and authorities believe he has a wider network, with further arrests expected soon. KASIM'S BROTHER HELD FOR ESPIONAGE Kasim's brother Asim has also been arrested by the Delhi Police for allegedly spying for Pakistan's ISI, sources told India Today. He had been on Indian intelligence agencies' radar for some time due to his suspicious cross-border connections. His name came up during the questioning of Kasim. As per sources, Asim made repeated visits to Pakistan under the pretext of meeting relatives, during which he allegedly came in contact with ISI agents. These interactions during his visits to Pakistan are now part of a broader probe, sources said. During interrogation, Kasim told the police that after reaching Pakistan for the first time, he was informed by his handlers that his brother was already working for them. Kasim came into the picture after Asim's visa expired. It was then that Kasim was allegedly asked to continue the link and facilitate further communication. Sources said that Asim would be taken to Gurugram and Barmer for further investigation. Hearing the matter on Saturday, a Delhi court asked the Delhi Police if this could be a case of cyber fraud rather than espionage. Police said there have been multiple instances where Indian numbers were used in Pakistan to honey-trap officials. The SIM cards, obtained from Central Delhi's Anand Parbat area, were issued in Asim's name and were taken to Pakistan by Kasim, they added. Meanwhile, sections under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) are likely to be invoked against Kasim at a later stage, according to sources. The man arrested by Delhi Police for allegedly spying for Pakistan visited the country twice in a year to receive training from his ISI handlers, officials told India Today. That Kasim, a resident of Rajasthan, visited Pakistan was confirmed after he was seen in a YouTube video speaking to a Pakistani media outlet. Kasim was arrested in the Deeg area of Mewat in Rajasthan on Thursday. The video, posted by the YouTube channel 'Rehbar-e-Mewat', shows Kasim telling the news anchor that it "felt like home" in Pakistan. "Mr Kasim, welcome to Pakistan once again. How does it feel to be back in Pakistan?" the anchor is heard asking him. To this, Kasim replies, "It feels like home. I get so much love and affection here that it brings me back so soon. I am back here in less than three months due to your people's love and affection". According to officials, Kasim visited Pakistan for the first time in August 2024 and again in March 2025, staying for about 90 days in total. During these visits, he received espionage training from his ISI handlers and senior operatives. Investigations revealed that Kasim was sending Indian SIM cards to Pakistan, which were then used by Pakistani Intelligence Operatives (PIOs) to contact Indians via WhatsApp for gathering sensitive military and government-related information. Kasim is also alleged to have radicalised several individuals in India and authorities believe he has a wider network, with further arrests expected soon. KASIM'S BROTHER HELD FOR ESPIONAGE Kasim's brother Asim has also been arrested by the Delhi Police for allegedly spying for Pakistan's ISI, sources told India Today. He had been on Indian intelligence agencies' radar for some time due to his suspicious cross-border connections. His name came up during the questioning of Kasim. As per sources, Asim made repeated visits to Pakistan under the pretext of meeting relatives, during which he allegedly came in contact with ISI agents. These interactions during his visits to Pakistan are now part of a broader probe, sources said. During interrogation, Kasim told the police that after reaching Pakistan for the first time, he was informed by his handlers that his brother was already working for them. Kasim came into the picture after Asim's visa expired. It was then that Kasim was allegedly asked to continue the link and facilitate further communication. Sources said that Asim would be taken to Gurugram and Barmer for further investigation. Hearing the matter on Saturday, a Delhi court asked the Delhi Police if this could be a case of cyber fraud rather than espionage. Police said there have been multiple instances where Indian numbers were used in Pakistan to honey-trap officials. The SIM cards, obtained from Central Delhi's Anand Parbat area, were issued in Asim's name and were taken to Pakistan by Kasim, they added. Meanwhile, sections under the Official Secrets Act (OSA) are likely to be invoked against Kasim at a later stage, according to sources. Join our WhatsApp Channel
New Indian Express
5 days ago
- New Indian Express
Spy ring accused helped Pakistan get Indian SIM cards
CHANDIGARH: Questioning of a dozen people arrested in Punjab and Haryana on charges of allegedly spying for Pakistan has revealed a new trend of their ISI handlers procuring Indian SIM cards from them to call junior-level police officers for information about Indian troop movement during Operation Sindoor, central intelligence agency sources said. The handlers reportedly impersonated senior officers from the Indian defence establishment and other agencies. They also used the SIMs to try to honey-trap officers or soldiers and blackmail them with recorded videos of sensitive information. Sources in the central intelligence agencies stated that the interrogation of the arrested individuals revealed a common factor: they all became involved in espionage activities after coming into contact with officials of the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi. They reportedly confessed that High Commission staff had asked them several times to procure Indian SIM cards in return for visa facilitation. 'ISI handlers have continuously carried out this practice of demanding SIM cards in exchange for visas at the Pakistani High Commission for the past few years,' said an officer on condition of anonymity. Intelligence sources said the Pakistani modus operandi was to target less-educated individuals with relatives in Pakistan and who sought visas to visit them. Such people were asked to get SIM cards and share OTPs with them to activate the numbers. The SIMs were then reportedly used by Pakistani Intelligence Operatives (PIOs) sitting across the border.
Hindustan Times
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra leaked blackout details to Pakistani intelligence officials: Report
YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra, who was arrested on charges of espionage for her alleged links with Pakistani Intelligence Operatives (PIOs), shared sensitive information about India during Operation Sindoor to Pakistan, News18 reported citing sources. The Haryana-based YouTuber reportedly shared details regarding the blackouts imposed by the Centre during the armed forces' operation against terror infrastructure in Pakistan. This comes just a day after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Intelligence Bureau grilled Malhotra during interrogation. The Haryana police and the central investigating agencies have found that the YouTuber was in regular touch with Ehsan-ur-Rahim, alias Danish, an employee at the Pakistani High Commission in Delhi. She had been in touch with him from November 2023 till March 2025. Hisar police spokesman Vikas Kumar said that Malhotra confessed to being in touch with Danish, HT reported. Officials have also sent her three mobile phones, a laptop, along with two mobile phones of Harkirat Singh, IT in-charge of Haryana Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee, were sent for forensic analysis. Kumar said that Danish was developing Malhotra as "an asset", adding that she was in touch with other YouTubers as well. She will produced before a local court on Wednesday where police will seek an extension of her remand. Danish has now been declared persona non grata by India. He had introduced Malhotra to Ali Ahwan, who then arranged her accommodation in Pakistan and her meetings with Islamabad security officials. She reportedly kept in touch with the Pakistani officials even after returning to India. The YouTuber had met Danish several times at the Pakistan High Commission in the capital. Malhotra's trips to Pakistan, including the one before the Pahalgam attack, and China, are all under the probing agencies' scanner. A senior police officer, as per HT's report, also said that Jyoti Malhotra's has multiple back accounts to her name with many transactions. All these transactions are also being analysed. In addition to Malhotra, 11 other persons were arrested over the last two weeks for allegedly being a part of Pakistan's spy operations.
Hindustan Times
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
What YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra's diary revealed about her Pakistan trip: ‘Crazy'
YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra was recently arrested under espionage charges for her alleged links with Pakistani Intelligence Operatives (PIOs) and is being probed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and the Intelligence Bureau (IB). Her trips to Pakistan, including the one before the Pahalgam terror attack, and China, are all under the scanner. While intelligence agencies are interrogating Jyoti Malhotra, the recovery of her diary by the Haryana Police provides more insight into her visit to Pakistan. In an undated diary entry, she mentioned her return to 'my country' India from a 10-day Pakistan trip, NDTV reported. "During this time, I received a lot of love from the people of Pakistan. Our subscribers and friends also came to meet us. The two days we got to visit Lahore were not enough," it said. She also described Pakistan as "crazy", "colourful", and said that her experience in the neighbor nation couldn't be put into words. In one of her entries, Jyoti Malhotra also penned down a request she made to the Pakistani authorities. "Protect the temples there and let Indians meet their families from whom they were separated in 1947," it was quoted by the NDTV report. The 33-year-old YouTuber with a channel called 'Travel with Jo' and more than 3.77 lakh subscribers was arrested from her residence in Hisar on May 16. Jyoti Malhotra was booked under Sections 3 and 5 of the Official Secrets Act, 1923, and Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The Haryana police and the probing agencies have also found that Malhotra was in regular touch with a Pakistani staffer from the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi, Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish, from November 2023 to March 2025. Hisar police spokesman Vikas Kumar said that Malhotra confessed of being in touch with Danish, HT reported. Danish was allegedly "developing her as an asset". Danish, now declared a persona non grata by India, introduced the YouTuber to Ali Ahwan, who then arranged for her accommodation and further meetings with Pakistani security officials Shakir and Rana Shahbaz. As per the FIR registered against her, she had saved Shakir's contact as "Jatt Randhawa" to avoid any suspicion. Following her return to India, Malhotra reportedly kept communicating with the operatives via WhatsApp, Telegram, and Snapchat. She also met Danish several times at the Pakistani High Commission in the national capital. The FIR states that Malhotra was part of a larger espionage network spread across Haryana and Punjab, and involved agents, informants, and financial handlers, HT's report said. The YouTuber also reportedly had multiple bank accounts with several transactions, all of which are now being analysed by the central probing agencies along with her travel history. Hisar superintendent of police (SP) Shashank Kumar Sawan had said at a press conference earlier, "Her known income sources do not justify her foreign travel. We suspect external funding. On the surface, she was just a travel blogger." Along with Malhotra, 11 others were arrested by the Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh police over the last two weeks for their alleged role in Pakistani spy operations. Another YouTuber, Guzala, was held from Punjab.
