Bombay High Court Orders Removal of AI-Generated Deepfake Content Targeting Nitin Gadkari
The Bombay High Court ordered removal of AI-generated deepfake images and videos targeting central minister Nitin Gadkari from social media platforms, finding the content highly offensive and defamatory. The synthetic media reportedly linked Gadkari and his family to improper financial benefit from an E20 fuel policy, and social platforms including Meta and Google agreed to comply with the removal order.
What happened
Deepfake images, videos and objectionable social media posts targeting central minister Nitin Gadkari were created using AI and posted on social platforms including Meta, X and Google. The content allegedly linked Gadkari and his family to improper financial gain from the E20 ethanol-blending fuel program.
Gadkari filed a petition with the Bombay High Court seeking removal of at least 24 such posts, which he described as false, defamatory and damaging to his reputation. He emphasized his concern was not with criticism of government policy itself, but with fabricated and offensive content falsely attributing personal financial motive to him.
Reported impact
Justice Arif Doctor found the content to be highly offensive, obscene and defamatory, stating it had no place on any public platform accessible to anyone, including children. Meta and Google appeared in court and agreed to remove the specified content.
Index analysis
The incident demonstrates the use of synthetic media technology to create false content linking a public official to policy decisions for apparent reputational damage. Gadkari sought damages of 11 crore rupees and also requested the court permit a civil suit to proceed against the social media platforms.
Governance controls
The High Court ordered social media intermediaries to remove the identified defamatory and deepfake material and directed Gadkari to report any future similar content to the platform defendants for necessary action.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.