The Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police have registered an FIR against Meta India head Arun Srinivas and several social media users as part of an investigation into AI-generated morphed videos allegedly targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The videos were allegedly circulated on Meta-owned platforms, including Facebook and Instagram, following the students' protest held at Delhi's Jantar Mantar. Investigators are examining whether the manipulated content misled the public and violated provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Information Technology Act.

The cases were registered following complaints filed by S Aravind Reddy, a businessman, and T Saikiran Goud, a Telangana BJP worker, who alleged that they came across multiple manipulated videos and images of the PM while browsing Instagram.

The FIR was registered at the Hyderabad Cyber Crime Police Station under provisions of the IT Act and the BNS, based on the complaint filed by Goud.

According to the complaints, the content, which was allegedly circulated during the recent Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)-led protests over the alleged NEET paper leak, portrayed the PM in an 'obscene, derogatory and misleading' manner. The complainants also alleged that the posts were accompanied by abusive and indecent comments directed at PM Modi and others featured in the content.

The complainants further alleged that the circulation of such content had the potential to 'spread misinformation, incite public unrest, outrage public decency, defame public figures, disturb public order and promote hostility' among different sections of society.

According to reports, Cyber Crime officials are tracing the source of the AI-generated videos and investigating how the content gained widespread reach across social media platforms.

The investigation will also assess whether Meta's existing systems for detecting and limiting manipulated content were sufficient. Further legal action will depend on the digital evidence collected during the investigation.

Meta India is yet to release any statement on the matter. 

Police have also taken note of several posts and comments linked to the student protests that allegedly contained abusive and profane language. An investigation is underway to identify those responsible for creating and circulating the content. 

The development comes days after multiple X accounts reportedly received notices from the Delhi Police over the sharing of allegedly objectionable and derogatory content relating to constitutional authorities, with an FIR also registered in that matter.

Separately, the Noida Police recently booked a woman over alleged objectionable remarks against the PM in a video that was widely circulated on social media. 

Further, there are speculations about a raid at Barcode Entertainment, since the start of this week. Speculations about the raid link it to the CJP protest. Barcode was acquired by YKONE, a France-based influencer marketing group in 2024.