Lucknow: Following the recent arrest of Haryana-based YouTuber and travel blogger Jyoti Malhotra on espionage charges, the Uttar Pradesh Police's Special Task Force (STF) has apprehended a businessman from Rampur for allegedly spying for Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
The accused, Shahzad, was taken into custody in Moradabad after intelligence reports linked him to cross-border smuggling and espionage activities for Pakistan. Officials state that Shahzad had been transmitting sensitive national security information to his handlers across the border.
The Uttar Pradesh Police's Special Task Force (STF) stated that Shahzad had made multiple trips to Pakistan in recent years, ostensibly for business purposes. He was reportedly involved in smuggling goods such as cosmetics, clothing, spices, and other items across the border. However, authorities revealed that this trade was merely a cover for his covert operations on behalf of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
Further investigations uncovered Shahzad’s deeper involvement in espionage. In addition to passing strategic information to Pakistani agents, he actively facilitated their operations within India. According to the STF, he provided Indian SIM cards and financial support to ISI operatives working in the country.
Officials also discovered that Shahzad was instrumental in recruiting individuals from Rampur and other parts of Uttar Pradesh for ISI-linked activities. Their visas were reportedly arranged by ISI agents to enable their travel to Pakistan.
Following the confirmation of these findings, an FIR (No. 04/25) under Sections 148 and 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) was registered at Police Station ATS, Lucknow.
This arrest comes on the heels of a similar case involving travel blogger Jyoti Malhotra, who was detained by Haryana Police earlier this week, along with five others, for allegedly spying and providing sensitive information to Pakistani operatives. Malhotra, who had travelled to Pakistan twice in 2023, was placed in police remand for five days after her alleged links to a spy network spanning Haryana and Punjab came to light.
According to the First Information Report (FIR), Malhotra visited the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi in 2023, where she met Ehsan-ur-Rahim, alias Danish, a Pakistani High Commission staffer. She reportedly shared sensitive information related to Indian locations and military movements while also portraying Pakistan in a positive light through her social media content.
Danish was recently declared persona non grata by the Indian government and expelled from the country on May 13. He is said to have introduced Malhotra to multiple intelligence operatives in Pakistan. Investigators claim that she was in a personal relationship with one of these operatives and even travelled with him to Bali, Indonesia.
During Danish's tenure in Delhi, Malhotra was allegedly in regular contact with him. She is believed to have met intelligence officers during her visits to Pakistan and had supplied them with sensitive details about Indian military activities.
(inputs from IANS)