Fact Check: NSA Ajit Doval meets exiled Putin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky in London? No, image is AI-generated

In this context, an image of National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval allegedly meeting exiled oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a prominent critic and long-standing opponent of President Putin, has been circulating on social media. Propaganda accounts are sharing the image, claiming the meeting occurred recently in London and suggesting India is pursuing a dual strategy—maintaining an overt partnership with Moscow while covertly engaging with anti-Kremlin actors.

An X account based in South Asia shared the image with the caption, “Hypocrisy of New Delhi. India keeps quiet defence channels with Russia, yet open-source traces suggest NSA Ajit Doval visited London and met Kremlin critic Mikhail Khodorkovsky. If true, it hints at a dual-track strategy and future leverage in a shifting global order. (sic)”

The Whistle Blower (currently withheld in India and based in South Asia), an X account known for disseminating AI-manipulated videos of Indian officers and politicians, shared the image with the allegation, “Preliminary indicators suggest a contradictory signalling pattern from New Delhi. While India continues to pursue undisclosed defence cooperation channels with Russia, open source traces point to Indian NSA Ajit Doval’s recent visit to London, where he reportedly met Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a prominent Kremlin critic and long-standing opponent of President Putin’s administration. If verified, this creates a potential divergence between India’s overt partnership posture toward Moscow and its covert engagement with anti-Kremlin actors. Such dual track behaviour could imply that India is shaping a parallel influence line, possibly preparing leverage for future negotiations or positioning itself for geopolitical shifts inside Russia.”

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim is false, as the image is AI-generated. The image is being circulated by a propaganda account linked to Pakistan with the intent to discredit India’s foreign policy and bilateral relationship with Russia.

Did national or international media report on the meeting?

We conducted a keyword search but found no credible news reports or official records of a meeting between Ajit Doval and Mikhail Khodorkovsky.

Khodorkovsky is an exiled Russian businessman and Kremlin critic, while Doval is a high-ranking Indian government official. A meeting between them in a public restaurant would be a significant geopolitical event and would have been widely covered by the media. The lack of such coverage further suggests that the image could be AI-generated.

Are there red flags about the authenticity of the image?

The red flags are not as evident in the image as they were in earlier AI-generated content, likely due to advancements in generative AI technology.

However, we examined recent images of both Doval and Khodorkovsky online and found that both appear fitter and younger in the viral image compared to authentic photographs.

What did the AI-detection tool find?

We analysed the image on Hive Moderation, which flagged that the image was likely to contain AI-generated or Deepfake content with a confidence score of 99.9 per cent.

Which generative AI was used to create the image?

We uploaded the image to the Google DeepMind SynthID detector to verify its origin; the tool confirmed it was created using Google AI.

Therefore, we conclude that the claim that this image shows NSA Ajit Doval meeting Russian exiled oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky is false.