On June 25, a 22-year-old man was arrested for allegedly spending nearly 20 days on the IIT Bombay campus in Powai despite not being a student. Identified as Bilal Ahmed Teli, he reportedly used 21 different email IDs and took care not to leave any evidence behind.
Police have added charges of cheating and forgery to the FIR. Investigations revealed that Teli attended lectures during the day and slept on sofas on the ground floor of student hostels at night.
Teli told police he had always dreamed of studying at an IIT and managed to sneak into the campus on May 27 while attending a one-day course. However, what raised police suspicion was his “clean digital record” — maintained using 21 email addresses and multiple phone numbers, an official said.
An FIR was filed against Teli on June 21 after an IIT Bombay staff member, who didn’t recognize him, spotted him in the office and alerted security.
Though Powai police initially registered the FIR, issued a notice, and let him go, sources said they now believe further questioning is necessary to uncover the motive behind his unusual actions. “He was presented before the local court, which remanded him to two weeks of police custody,” a police officer said.
Later that day, the case was transferred to the Mumbai Crime Branch, which took Teli into custody for further investigation.
According to the FIR, the incident first came to light on June 4 when a staff member from the IIT Credit Department reported that an unidentified man had entered her office without authorisation. When asked to present his ID, he fled the scene. She then shared CCTV images with campus security, who launched a search but failed to locate him.
On June 17, around 4 pm, the same staffer alerted the IIT Vigilance Department after spotting the individual attending a class in Lecture Hall LH-101. The institute’s Quick Response Team (QRT) arrived, detained him, and informed the Powai police. Police registered an FIR against Teli for trespassing and began questioning him.
During initial interrogation, he admitted he was not an IIT student and had illegally stayed in various hostels between June 2 and June 7, and again from June 10 onwards. He was initially issued a notice and released, with instructions to report for further questioning in the following days to rule out any security threats.
“While examining his phone, we discovered he had used 21 email IDs, multiple mobile phones, and encrypted apps like Signal to avoid leaving any trace. His efforts to erase his digital footprint raised suspicion. He had also reviewed CCTV footage of various campus entry and exit points, and we believe he may have left and returned multiple times,” an official said.
“He completed education up to class 10 with 48 percent marks. Although he claims to have studied for two more years, this remains unverified. He spent a few years working in Surat before returning to Mangalore. He says his strong interest in technology motivated him to come here,” an official said.
