05 August,2026 02:31 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Nitin Gadkari. Pic/X
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday ordered the immediate removal of allegedly defamatory social media posts and online content targeting Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, describing the material as "vile, abusive, obscene and defamatory."
Granting interim relief to Gadkari, Justice Arif Doctor directed Meta, X Corp and Google LLC to ensure that the disputed posts are taken down without delay.
"These posts, on the face of it, are abusive, vile and obscene," the court observed.
The court further said such material should not remain accessible on public platforms, particularly because it can be viewed by younger users.
The order came during the hearing of a civil suit filed by Gadkari seeking the removal of allegedly defamatory content generated using artificial intelligence and deepfake technology.
During the hearing, the Bombay High Court questioned representatives of Meta, X Corp and Google LLC about whether their platforms have adequate systems to detect and remove abusive or defamatory content without requiring victims to approach the courts.
The bench observed that online platforms should proactively remove content that is clearly abusive or obscene instead of waiting for judicial intervention.
"With all this technology at your disposal, don't you have some mechanism where there should be triggers? If someone uploads something vulgar or abusive, it should immediately be picked up and deleted. This is absolutely vile. Someone is just spewing venom," Justice Doctor said.
The court also observed that there should be an effective mechanism to identify and remove such content before it spreads widely online.
The High Court said that if similar posts, including deepfakes or AI-generated material, are uploaded in the future, Gadkari may directly approach the online platforms, which should then take appropriate action.
Justice Doctor remarked that technology companies should develop systems enabling prompt removal of such content without requiring affected individuals to seek court intervention in every case.
The matter has been posted for further hearing after four weeks. The respondents have been directed to file their affidavits in reply before the next hearing.
Gadkari filed the civil suit last week against Meta, X Corp, Google LLC and unidentified individuals through advocate Sandeep Ladda.
In his petition, the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways sought an immediate takedown of the allegedly fake and fabricated content and requested a permanent injunction restraining further circulation of similar material.
He has also sought damages of Rs 11 crore for the alleged harm caused to his reputation.
According to the suit, several AI-generated images, deepfakes and social media posts falsely portrayed Gadkari as being personally responsible for the government's ethanol-blended fuel programme and alleged that he and members of his family had derived financial benefits from the policy.
The petition contends that the online posts contain false, malicious and defamatory allegations that have caused irreparable damage to Gadkari's reputation and personality rights.
It also states that the ethanol blending programme and the E20 fuel policy are administered by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and not by Gadkari in his personal capacity.
While seeking legal action against the alleged defamatory content, the petition clarifies that it does not seek to restrict fair criticism or legitimate public debate. Instead, it argues that the disputed posts go beyond lawful expression by making false and defamatory allegations based on fabricated and AI-generated material.
(With inputs from PTI)
