Hisar court refuses bail to YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra arrested in espionage case

HISAR, Oct 25: A court in Haryana’s Hisar district has dismissed the bail plea of YouTuber Jyoti Malhotra, who was arrested in May on the suspicion of espionage, and said there is a reasonable apprehension that her release on bail may impede the probe.
Hisar police had arrested Malhotra (33), who ran the YouTube channel ‘Travel with JO’, on May 16 under provisions of the Official Secrets Act and the BNS. Malhotra at present is in judicial custody.In its detailed order, the court of Additional Sessions Judge Dr Parminder Kaur dismissed the regular bail plea.The court observed that public interest and national security considerations assume special significance where the allegations, if established, would impair the sovereign interest of the state.
“Courts must be mindful that bail is not to be granted if it would be a danger to public order, security or if it would result in the accused being in a position to frustrate the process,” it said.On the argument of the petitioner’s counsel that the intelligence inputs relied upon are untested and that the prosecution failed to produce direct evidence of communication or transmission of sensitive material to foreign agents, the court said while it is true that such matters ultimately must be tested at trial and the accused has the right to contest the allegations.It also said the court, when considering the bail, must view the totality of the evidence available at the stage.On the argument that the petitioner is a woman, the sole bread-winner and a person of apparently clean antecedents, the judge said courts routinely recognise social and familial vulnerabilities when deciding bail.(PTI)