Seven arrested across Assam in major crackdown on online child sexual abuse content

Assam Police on January 29, arrested seven persons from six districts in a coordinated state-wide operation targeting the creation and circulation of Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material (CSEAM), marking one of the fastest crackdowns on online child sexual abuse networks in the state.

The operation was carried out by the Crime Investigation Department (CID), Assam, following actionable inputs from the Cyber Tipline, a centralised reporting mechanism that flags online child sexual exploitation and abuse content shared across social media platforms and websites.

Cases have been registered under relevant provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Information Technology Act. Officials said the arrests were made within 24 hours with the help of advanced digital forensics and real-time technical support from the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) under the Ministry of Home Affairs.

In Golaghat district, Dulu Boruah and Raju Dutta were arrested under Section 67B of the Information Technology Act read with Section 15 of the POCSO Act. Another accused, Priyam Handique, was apprehended from the same district on similar charges.

From Kamrup Metropolitan district, Hemanta Kalita was arrested for offences under Sections 67(A) and 67B of the IT Act, read with Section 15(2) of the POCSO Act and Section 294(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023. Minhaz Khan was arrested from Kamrup district under Sections 61(2)(b) of the BNS, read with Sections 14 and 15 of the POCSO Act and Section 67B of the IT Act.

Two more arrests were made from Barpeta and Bajali districts. Aychan Ali Ahmed and Deluwar Hussain were apprehended under Section 67B of the IT Act read with relevant provisions of the POCSO Act.

Officials said mobile devices allegedly used in the commission of the offences have been seized, and further investigation is underway to identify additional links involved in the creation, storage, and dissemination of illegal content.

Reiterating its zero-tolerance policy towards crimes against children, Assam Police said it remains committed to dismantling online exploitation networks and ensuring a safer digital space.