The Bombay High Court will hear Union Minister Nitin Gadkari’s lawsuit against Meta, Google, X Corp and unidentified individuals over allegedly defamatory AI-generated content on August 5. Gadkari is seeking the removal of posts and deepfakes that falsely link him and his family to financial benefits from India’s ethanol-blended fuel policy. The court has directed his lawyer to serve copies of the suit on the defendants.
Gadkari’s petition claims the posts create a false impression that he personally controls the ethanol program and has benefited financially from it. His lawyers argue that the policy is administered by India’s Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, not by Gadkari’s Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. The suit seeks a permanent injunction against the circulation of the content while stating that it does not aim to restrict legitimate criticism or public debate.
Bombay High Court defers hearing of the defamation suit filed by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari seeking Rs 11 crore damages from unknown users posting defamatory, deepfake and AI content linking him to the controversial Ethanol-blended fuel policy, till Wednesday. @nitin_gadkari… pic.twitter.com/ssxd4UdezM
— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) July 28, 2026
What Gadkari’s deepfake case could mean for social media platforms
The lawsuit could push platforms to rethink how they deal with AI-generated content involving politicians and other public figures. If courts expect faster action on harmful deepfakes, companies may need stronger systems for verifying content and handling complaints before false material spreads widely.
The case could also influence how platforms assess their legal exposure in India. A ruling against them could encourage more public figures to seek court orders over AI-generated posts, while a decision favouring the platforms could give them more room to rely on existing moderation policies.
AI deepfakes are becoming a legal problem in India
The growing use of AI tools has made it easier to create convincing fake videos, images and audio that can be difficult to distinguish from real content. This creates new legal questions around who should be held responsible when fabricated material damages someone’s reputation, especially when the person who created it cannot be easily identified.
For Indian courts, cases involving AI-generated content could also test existing laws on defamation, privacy and personality rights. The court needs to find rules that protect people from harmful fabrications without giving platforms or authorities excessive power to remove legitimate criticism and political speech.
Meanwhile, artificial intelligence is beginning to reshape staffing across India’s private banking sector, with several lenders reporting smaller workforces as automation takes on more routine tasks.
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