Haryana YouTuber had been in touch with Pakistani staffer since 2023: Police
Chandigarh, May 21 (PTI): Jailed YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra had been in contact with a Pakistani officer since 2023, police revealed on Wednesday.
Malhotra, behind bars on suspicion of espionage, had been in touch with Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish, the Pakistani staffer at the Pakistani High Commission, since November 2023, a source said.
Danish was expelled by India on May 13 for allegedly indulging in espionage.
Police have sent Malhotra's three mobile phones and a laptop for forensic examination, the person said.
The National Investigation Agency, Intelligence Bureau, and military intelligence officials have questioned Jyoti.
So far, it's been revealed that she had visited Pakistan, China, Bangladesh, and some other countries.
The 33-year-old Hisar native ran a YouTube channel 'Travel with JO' and was arrested from the New Aggarsain Extension last week.
She was booked under sections of the Official Secrets Act and the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita, police said.
Malhotra is among 12 people who have been arrested from Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh over the past two weeks on charges of espionage, with investigators suspecting the presence of a Pakistan-linked spy network operating in north India.
Police had earlier said Pakistani intelligence operatives (PIOs) were developing Malhotra as an asset.
She was also allegedly in touch with Danish during the four-day military conflict between India and Pakistan that followed the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, police said.
Malhotra, whose YouTube channel has at present 3.87 lakh subscribers, came in contact with Danish at the Pakistan High Commission in 2023, when she went there seeking a visa.
According to investigations, PIOs were trying to recruit some social media influencers in India to push their narrative.
Meanwhile, Hisar police on Wednesday said they had seized three mobile phones, a laptop and some other electronic devices from Malhotra.
A resident of Kurukshetra, who provides visa consultancy services, was also recently questioned by police in connection with the investigation. Police said they seized two mobile phones from him.
Police said no evidence has yet emerged that indicates that Malhotra had access to any military- or defence-related information.
Malhotra's four bank accounts are also being analysed, they said.
No proof has also yet come to light regarding Malhotra's marriage with any PIO or conversion to another religion.
Meanwhile, YouTuber Navankur Chaudhary, another person under scrutiny for espionage, has said that he was ready to fully cooperate with any investigation agency and asserted that a fake narrative was being spread against him.
Chaudhary, who hails from Rohtak, has also claimed that Malhotra had met him as a fan at an event at Pakistan High Commission.
"I did not know Jyoti personally before that day. I had never met her earlier," he said.
In a video on X, Chaudhary, who runs the YouTube channel 'Yatri Doctor', said he has visited Pakistan just once.
His father said on Wednesday, "A media trial is going on. Our entire family is going through a tough time. I am a bank employee, but have been unable to attend office due to this. Both me and his (Navankur) mother have not had food for the past two days."
The man added, "So far, he has visited 144 countries and his objective is to visit the entire world and he visited Pakistan once. At present, he is in Ireland."
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Commercial LPG hike: Delhi restaurant owners warn of higher menu rates, job losses
New Delhi (PTI) A day after a 50 per cent rise in commercial LPG cylinder prices, Delhi's food business, with restaurant owners and street vendors have warned of higher menu rates, financial strain and potential job losses if the trend persists.
The price of commercial LPG was hiked by a steep Rs 993 per 19 kg cylinder, marking the third consecutive monthly hike amid rising global energy prices linked to the West Asia conflict.
For many in the restaurant industry, the spike has been both sudden and steep.
Manpreet Singh, honorary treasurer of the National Restaurant Association of India, said that eateries are already grappling with supply challenges alongside rising costs.
"There is a huge difficulty in getting these cylinders, and black marketing is also increasing in many unregulated sectors," he said, noting that prices that were once around Rs 1,600, often dropping to nearly Rs 1,300 with discounts, have now surged to between Rs 3,000 and Rs 4,000 per cylinder.
He further added that a medium-sized restaurant typically uses between two and five cylinders daily, making the increase particularly burdensome as costs mount.
Singh further said that as costs mount, smaller establishments could struggle to stay afloat. Instead, the association has advised restaurants to shift towards piped natural gas connections through Indraprastha Gas Limited as a more sustainable alternative.
"If this problem continues, PNG is the only long-term solution," he said, adding that temporary measures like coal offer limited relief due to slower cooking times and that it can largely be used only for tandoors.
Echoing similar concerns, Kabir Suri, owner of Mamagoto in Khan Market, said the impact is already visible across the industry. "There has been almost a threefold increase in cylinder prices for restaurants," he said, adding that rising fuel and logistics costs are compounding the pressure.
"If this continues, it will become a significant financial burden, and food prices will inevitably go up. Adding to this burden, higher fuel costs are also affecting logistics and transportation, making a price rise unavoidable. The extent of the impact will vary between small eateries and large chains depending on their scale," he said.
Global oil prices have surged nearly 50 per cent following disruptions in energy supply chains due to the West Asia conflict, pushing up commercial fuel costs and transport expenses.
A West Delhi-based restaurateur said they are trying to manage rising costs while keeping their staff secure. "We are trying to ensure that our staff, from kitchen workers to waiters, are paid on time and do not face immediate hardship," the owner said.
"We are a small restaurant with seating for about 20 to 25 people at a time. But if this continues for long, we will have to take difficult calls. There is only so much we can absorb, and menu prices will have to go up. We hope this does not continue for a longer period," he said.
Another restaurant owner in North Delhi, who did not wish to be named, said operational adjustments alone may not be enough. "We are checking our costs very carefully and trying to cut wherever possible, but if fuel prices remain high, it will eventually affect how we run the business," the owner said.
"Coal helps in tandoor cooking, but it takes more time," the owner further added.
The strain is even more acute among street vendors, many of whom operate on thin margins. A vendor in Saket said he had recently expanded his business, moving from a mobile cart to a rented outlet.
"I have a family to feed and more responsibilities now. Earlier, I managed with a moving cart, but after renting the place, expenses increased," he said. "Whenever cylinders were unavailable, I had to buy them at higher rates in the black market. Now even regular supply is too expensive, and if this continues, we may have to shut down," he added.
In Laxmi Nagar, another vendor said they are struggling to keep the business running. "Sometimes we even used domestic cylinders from home when supply ran out because we had to keep the stall running," he said, adding that rising costs leave little choice but to increase prices or bear losses.
On April 1, the rates of commercial LPG cylinders were hiked by Rs 195.50 per cylinder, followed by a Rs 114.5 hike on March 1, taking the total increase over the past three months to Rs 1,303. With the latest revision, a 19 kg commercial LPG cylinder now costs Rs 3,371.5 in Delhi, up from Rs 2,078.5 earlier.
The prices of domestic LPG cylinders used for household cooking have remained unchanged. They were last increased by Rs 60 per 14.2 kg cylinder on March 7 and currently cost Rs 913 in Delhi.
