Bombay HC clears Nitin Gadkari’s suit over AI deepfakes and fake posts

MUMBAI: In the age of AI, not everything you see deserves a second look and the courts are beginning to agree. The Bombay High Court has granted Union Minister Nitin Gadkari permission to file a civil suit against Meta, X, Google, YouTube and unidentified individuals over the alleged circulation of defamatory posts and AI-generated deepfake content that he says falsely linked him to financial gains from India’s ethanol blending programme.

The order, passed by Justice Abhay Ahuja on Monday, allows Gadkari to institute the suit before the High Court’s original civil jurisdiction after granting leave under Clause XII of the Letters Patent, a procedural requirement when part of the cause of action arises outside the court’s territorial limits. A detailed copy of the order is awaited.

According reports, Gadkari’s counsel, Advocate Sandeep S. Ladda, argued that the disputed content was accessible to users in Mumbai through multiple online platforms, bringing part of the cause of action within the Bombay High Court’s jurisdiction. Since the material was available nationwide over the internet, permission under Clause XII was required before the suit could be formally instituted.

The proposed suit alleges that unidentified individuals circulated social media posts, videos and AI-generated deepfake content falsely portraying Gadkari as personally responsible for India’s ethanol blending policy and claiming that he and members of his family had profited financially from the initiative.

According to the proposed plaint, the allegations are fabricated, malicious and intended to damage the minister’s reputation by creating the false impression that he misused public office for personal gain. Gadkari has argued that the content has caused serious harm to his reputation, goodwill and personality rights.

The suit seeks permanent and mandatory injunctions against content that allegedly uses manipulated audio and video, falsely attributes statements to Gadkari, and reproduces his name, image, facial features and voice without consent.

Besides Meta, X, Google and YouTube, the proposed defendants include the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and unidentified content creators who have been impleaded as John Doe defendants.

The petition makes it clear that the action is not intended to curb fair criticism or public debate. Instead, it argues that the case targets content that crosses into defamation through fabricated claims and AI-enabled impersonation.

The filing also points out that although the disputed content relates to the government’s E20 fuel programme, the ethanol blending initiative is administered by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, not the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, which Gadkari heads.

With the procedural approval now in place, Gadkari can proceed with filing the substantive civil suit against the technology platforms and other parties named in the case.

The development comes amid growing concern over the use of artificial intelligence to generate political misinformation in India. Earlier this month, Union Minister Piyush Goyal filed a police complaint after an AI-generated deepfake video allegedly manipulated his remarks outside Parliament and circulated widely on social media.

Goyal said on X that the video had been digitally altered to spread misinformation and confirmed that an FIR had been registered at Delhi’s Chanakyapuri Police Station. He warned that legal action would be pursued against both those responsible for creating the fabricated clip and those involved in distributing or amplifying it online.

According to government sources, several links carrying the manipulated video have since been removed. The clip had reportedly depicted Goyal making inflammatory remarks about students protesting over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations, including NEET claims later debunked by the Press Information Bureau’s fact-check unit, which said the video originated from propaganda-linked social media accounts and had been generated using artificial intelligence.

As AI-generated content becomes increasingly sophisticated, the Gadkari case adds to a growing list of legal challenges testing where the line between free expression and digitally manufactured defamation should be drawn.