Indian police have arrested popular Sikh YouTuber Jasbir Singh on charges of spying for Pakistan on Tuesday.

 

According to reports, Sikhs in India are once again being targeted by the Narendra Modi- led government. 

 

Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav has alleged, "YouTuber Jasbir Singh was associated with a Pakistani network," adding that the network was also in contact with travel vlogger Jyoti Malhotra and Shakir alias Jatt Nandwa.

 

Indian media, already under intense global scrutiny for the disinformation it disseminated during the stand-off with Pakistan, has claimed that Jasbir Singh visited Pakistan in 2020, 2021, and 2024 and that phone numbers linked to Pakistan were found on his mobile device.

 

Indian outlets further accused Jasbir Singh, the creator of the Jan Mahal YouTube channel, of being part of a covert network, alleging that he was also in contact with "Ehsan-ur-Rahim alias Danish."

 

Modi government appears to be targeting expressions of Sikh identity on social media by labelling them as acts of espionage. Sikh YouTubers and digital activists are reportedly under strict surveillance.

 

Not only are accounts being shut down and posts being deleted for expressing Sikh identity online but supporters of Sikhs for Justice are also being booked under harsh laws such as the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). Cases of treason are being registered for merely speaking the word Khalistan, and ordinary Sikh citizens in Indian Punjab are increasingly being placed on intelligence watch lists.

 

In May, Indian vlogger Jyoti Malhotra, who runs the channel' Travel with Jo', was also arrested on similar charges. Days after Pakistan's Operation Bunyan Um Mursoos hammered Indian military targets, officials detained six of their own citizens, including Malhotra, accusing them of being in touch with the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi.