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‘Posts against Nitin Gadkari vile, defamatory. Take them down’: Bombay HC amid E20 row
The bench questioned platforms like Meta, X Corp and Google LLC if they had any mechanism to take down such posts without the person having to approach court.
The Bombay high court on Wednesday directed Meta, X, Google and other social media platforms to take down allegedly defamatory posts and AI-generated deepfake videos against Union minister Nitin Gadkari that linked him and his family members to the ethanol-blended petrol (EBP) programme. It asked them to come up with a framework to take down such content without court intervention every time.
A single-judge bench of Justice Arif Doctor called the content against Gadkari vile and abusive. “The material which the plaintiff seeks to pull down, I can only say that the same is absolutely vile and abusive. Such material should have no place on a public platform, which is accessible to everyone, including young.”
Justice Doctor said if any further abusive material or deepfakes are found, the same shall be communicated to the defendant. “In the event there is a grey area, they will have liberty to move court,” the bench said and posted the matter for a further hearing after four weeks.
Gadkari moves Bombay HC
Gadkari moved the court over the posts claiming he was responsible for implementing the EBP and that he and his family have financially benefited from it. In his petition, filed through advocate Sandeep S Ladda, Gadkari said social media posts falsely suggest that he and his family received undue financial benefits from the programme, “insinuating corruption, nepotism, conflict of interest, abuse of official position, misuse of governmental authority and other acts of impropriety.”
Gadkari argued that the content is ex facie false, fabricated, baseless, malicious, misleading, unsubstantiated and devoid of any factual foundation. “It contains abusive and derogatory language, scandalous remarks, false accusations and manipulated audio-visual material intended to falsely attribute statements and conduct to the plaintiff,” Gadkari’s petition said. It added that the defamatory content consists of profane, vulgar and abusive language directed at him. The petition sought ₹11 crore in damages.
Also Read: In Lok Sabha, Centre backs E20, says no proof of adverse impacts
Gadkari moved the court amid a growing backlash over the EBP, introduced to reduce crude oil imports. The programme was accelerated from 2021, with ethanol produced from sugarcane, rice and maize being blended with petrol. India achieved its target of 20% ethanol blending (E20) five years ahead of its original 2030 deadline.
Motorists have complained that E20 fuel is reducing mileage and causing engine corrosion in older, non-compliant vehicles. Gadkari and the government have rejected such claims, dismissing them as social media misinformation.
Gadkari approached the high court after Bharatiya Janata Party’s Nagpur social media cell convener, Shishir Arun Tripathi, lodged a police complaint last month over videos and posts circulating “baseless and objectionable claims” about the Union minister and E20 fuel that could “mislead the public, confuse citizens and disturb peace”.
