E-Paper
Meta takes down two AI-generated video of PM Modi
The AI-generated videos allegedly depicted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Adani Group chief Gautam Adani.
Meta has taken down two reels posted by the Indian National Congress (INC) on Facebook and Instagram after receiving content takedown notices from Delhi Police. The AI-generated videos allegedly depicted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Adani Group chief Gautam Adani.
According to disclosures uploaded by Meta on the Lumen transparency database, and reviewed by HT, the company received the notices on December 18, and restricted access to the two reels in India the same day. The content was posted from verified accounts of the INC on Facebook and Instagram.
In its Lumen submission, Meta said the Delhi Police invoked Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology (IT) Act and Rule 3(1)(d) of the IT Rules, 2021, along with provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and Section 66C of the IT Act.
“The risk of not complying with the notices was loss of safe harbour for the specific items and potential criminal penalties against Meta’s local personnel,” the company said in the Lumen submission, referring to protections available to intermediaries under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act. The company also said it informed the affected users about the action taken.
Meta noted in the Lumen submission that the reels did not violate its Community Standards. A Meta spokesperson clarified that the content was restricted “upon receipt of a valid blocking order” from law enforcement. The platform removes content that violates its own community standards or local laws. In this case, Meta acted due to the legal obligation attached to the Delhi Police notice and the risk of losing its safe harbour protections.
The official Instagram accounts of both the INC and the BJP regularly post AI-generated content, much of which appears in the form of memes. The recent takedown notice comes even as the government is pushing for better disclosure when it comes to AI-generated content.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on October 22 proposed a draft amendment to the IT Rules requiring social media companies to allow users to self-declare if the content they upload is AI-generated. In cases where users fail to make such declarations, platforms must proactively detect and label AI-generated content, the amendment said.
Latest data from Meta’s transparency report shows that in the first six months of 2025, the company restricted access to over 16,000 items in India following takedown requests from law enforcement agencies, including orders routed through the Ministry of Home Affairs’ Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre (I4C) and court orders. These requests covered issues such as impersonation, hate speech and harassment. I4C developed the Sahyog Portal, a centralized platform to automate the process of sending notices to intermediaries by the appropriate government or its agency under section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act.
In the same period, Meta also restricted access to more than 7,500 items following directions from MeitY and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting under Section 69A of the IT Act and the IT Blocking Rules, 2009. These cases were linked to concerns around public order, misinformation and national security.
Overall takedowns have also risen. In 2024, Meta removed about 25,600 pieces of content in India across Facebook and Instagram. In 2023 and 2022, this was 13930 and 1800 pieces of content respectively. In 2025, that number had already crossed 28,000 by June, according to the company’s disclosures.
