Kochi: The Kochi City Police have invoked stringent provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act against both college students arrested in connection with the AI-assisted morphing and circulation of sexually explicit images of Bharata Mata College faculty members, after child pornographic material was recovered from their digital devices.

The POCSO provisions were added following the forensic examination of the phones and other digital devices seized from the accused, District Police Chief (Kochi City) Kaliraj Mahesh Kumar told the media on Tuesday.

The two accused are Sreehari V S (20), a second-year BBA (Logistics) student of Bharata Mata College, and Saneesh (20), a BCom student at IHRD College, Mavelikkara, and a native of Korathiyad in Alappuzha.

Saneesh was taken into custody and formally arrested on Monday after the Special Investigation Team (SIT) summoned him for questioning.

According to the police, both accused were members of a network of Telegram groups allegedly used to circulate the morphed photographs. The police have also found that Saneesh operated a paid “premium” Telegram group, which became a key lead in tracing his involvement.

The police are examining whether the paid group was being used for commercial purposes and whether Saneesh financially benefited from the circulation of the material.

When asked about the extent of any financial benefit, the Commissioner did not confirm the exact sums involved but indicated that the premium group could have had a commercial purpose.

The SIT is also probing whether more people were involved in the network. The Commissioner said the police had not ruled out further arrests and stressed that any action would be based strictly on digital and physical evidence gathered during the investigation.

The recovery of child sexual abuse material from the seized devices led to the latest escalation in the case, with the police now examining the source, possession and circulation of such material in addition to the alleged AI morphing of photographs of college faculty.

The case originated after Sreehari allegedly used AI tools to manipulate photographs of faculty members and turn them into sexually explicit visuals before circulating them online.

The incident triggered widespread protests on the Bharata Mata College campus and resulted in Sreehari’s expulsion from the institution and his arrest.

The Thrikkakara police initially registered the case under Section 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Section 67 of the Information Technology Act and Section 119(1)(b) of the Kerala Police Act. The police later added the non-bailable offence under Section 67A of the IT Act, which deals with the electronic publication or transmission of sexually explicit material.