Mohali court remands YouTuber Jasbir Singh to 2 days of police custody. What are the charges against him?

Three days after being arrested on espionage charges, a Mohali court on Saturday remanded YouTuber Jasbir Singh to two days of police custody, reported ANI.

According to the report, Jasbir Singh alias Jaan Mahal (41) is a resident of Village Mahlan in Rupnagar. He has been operating a YouTube channel "JaanMahal Video" with over 11 lakh subscribers and posting travel and cooking vlogs.

Commenting on Jasbir's remand, his lawyer said, as quoted by ANI, "The police had asked for 7 days remand... We asked the police through the court what they did in 3 days. Today, he has been sent to a 2-day police remand."

The police have alleged that Jasbir is linked to a terror-backed espionage network involving Pakistani intelligence operative Shakir alias Jutt Randhawa.

The police further alleged that Jasbir maintained close contact with Haryana-based YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra, who was earlier arrested for espionage.

Also, Jasbir even maintained close relations with Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish, a Pakistani national and expelled Pakistan High Commission official, as alleged by the police.

Arrested on Wednesday:

The Punjab Police's State Special Operation Cell (SSOC), SAS Nagar, on Wednesday arrested Jasbir Singh for spying for Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav said in an official statement.

DGP Gaurav Yadav had said that Jasbir was found associated with Pakistani Intelligence Operative (PIO) Shakir alias Jutt Randhawa, which is a part of a terror-backed espionage network.

The DGP further added that Jasbir maintained close contact with Haryana-based YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra and Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish.

Among other things, DGP Yadav said Jasbir attended the Pakistan National Day event in Delhi on Danish's invitation, where he met Pakistani Army officials and vloggers.

The senior police official added the accused travelled to Pakistan on three occasions, including in 2020, 2021 and 2024, and came into direct contact with ISI officers. He was recruited then to carry out espionage activities within India.

Concluding his statement, DGP Yadav said Jasbir attempted to erase all traces of his communications with these PIOs to avoid detection, following Jyoti Malhotra's arrest. Meanwhile, investigations are underway to dismantle the broader espionage-terror network.

Others facing espionage charges:

A report by NDTV stated that the ones who are currently facing espionage charges include 25-year-old Patiala's Khalsa College student Davendra Singh Dhillon, 24-year-old security guard in Haryana Nauman Ilahi, 28-year-old health worker from Gujarat Sahdev Singh Gohil, Arman and Tarif from Haryana, and Rajasthan government employee from Jaisalmer Shakur Khan.

All the above mentioned people have been arrested on espionage charges and their links with Pakistan's ISI.

With agency inputs.