Chhattisgarh Police on Thursday arrested a 20-year-old student from the Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee International Institute of Information Technology (IIIT-Naya Raipur) for allegedly creating and distributing deepfake pornographic images of 36 female classmates. The accused identified as Syed Rahim Adnan Ali is a second-year Electronics and Communication Engineering student from Bilaspur district. He faces charges under the Information Technology Act and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The shocking incident came to light on October 6 when several female students approached faculty members with suspicions that their social media photos had been digitally altered into explicit content using AI-based image generation and editing tools. The images, sourced from their public social media profiles, were reportedly generated and stored on the accused’s personal devices, including his laptop, mobile phone, and pen drive.
IIIT-Naya Raipur acted decisively after the complaints, and formed a fact-finding committee led by a female professor to probe the allegations. Within hours, the committee confiscated the devices, expelled Ali from the institute, and suspended him from the hostel. His parents were summoned the same day, and he was sent back to Bilaspur. A formal complaint was lodged with Rakhi Police Station the following evening, October 7.
IIIT Raipur Registrar and spokesperson Srinivas said, “The student was expelled on October 6 itself. A formal police complaint was filed the following evening, and all digital evidence, including the laptop, mobile phone, and pen drive, will be handed over to the police.”
Acting on the complaint filed by Dr. Srinivas K.G., Registrar (In-Charge) of IIIT Raipur, the police registered FIR No. 164/25 under Section 352 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 66(G) and 66(D) of the Information Technology Act against Ali. A joint team of the Anti Crime and Cyber Unit and Rakhi police swiftly arrested the student on Thursday from his hometown. During interrogation, he reportedly confessed to creating the morphed images using digital tools.
“We later received a written complaint from the IIIT management and registered an FIR. The accused Syed Rahim Adnan Ali, 20, has been arrested, and a formal investigation has begun,” Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Vivek Shukla told reporters. He added that a police team visited the campus on Wednesday to coordinate evidence collection, while another unit travelled to Bilaspur to take Ali into custody. The FIR invokes Section 66B of the IT Act, which penalizes unauthorized access to computer systems, and BNS Section 352 for intentionally insulting to provoke a breach of peace. Further probe is underway, with all seized devices to be forensically examined.
