E20 Row: Bombay High Court Permits Nitin Gadkari to Sue Meta, X, and Google Over AI Deepfakes
The Bombay High Court permitted Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari to file a civil suit against major tech firms including Meta Platforms, X Corp, and Google LLC. The legal action addresses allegedly defamatory AI-generated deepfake videos and manipulated digital media linking Gadkari and his family to financial gains from the Union government's ethanol-blended petrol (E20) initiative.
- Republic Business
- 2 min read
;'%3e%3cpath%20d='m8,15.99c4.41,0,7.99-3.58,7.99-7.99S12.41,0,8,0,0,3.59,0,8s3.58,7.99,7.99,7.99Z'%20style='stroke:%23fff;%20stroke-miterlimit:10;%20stroke-width:.02px;'/%3e%3cpath%20d='m3.08,3.37l3.82,5.11-3.84,4.15h.87l3.37-3.64,2.72,3.64h2.94l-4.04-5.39,3.58-3.87h-.86l-3.1,3.35-2.5-3.35h-2.94Zm1.27.64h1.35l5.97,7.99h-1.35l-5.97-7.99Z'%20style='fill:%23fff;'/%3e%3c/g%3e%3c/svg%3e){kind=small}
Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has been allowed by the Bombay High Court to file a civil lawsuit against social media giants Meta, X, and Google over fake, AI-generated videos targeting him.
A single bench of Justice Abhay Ahuja on Monday allowed Gadkari’s plea to sue the tech companies alongside several digital content creators. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Ministry of Telecommunications have also been included as respondents in the case.
Represented by advocate Sandeep S. Ladda, Gadkari asked the court to order the immediate removal of the manipulated videos and block further sharing of AI content that uses his voice, image, and facial features without his permission. The court noted that it would hear his request for an interim order to take down the deepfakes at a later date.
Minister Denies Role in E20 Fuel Policy
In his plea, the minister pointed out that the viral deepfake posts falsely present him as the main decision-maker behind the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) and E20 fuel policies, while claiming he and his family made money from the initiative.
Advertisement
Denying these claims, Gadkari clarified that the E20 program is run entirely by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, adding that he has no administrative role or financial interest in the policy. "The goal of filing this suit is not to stop the public from discussing, analyzing, or criticizing any policy decision," the plea stated. It also noted the use of vulgar language and fabricated videos fall outside fair criticism or political satire.
Deepfakes and Personality Rights
The case adds to a growing number of lawsuits in Indian courts over the misuse of AI deepfakes and the protection of public figures' personality rights.
Advertisement
Gadkari argued that the unauthorized use of his digital persona causes serious harm to his reputation that cannot be made up for with money. The legal action follows a recent criminal complaint filed by the BJP’s social media unit in Nagpur against influencers running organized digital campaigns on the ethanol blending issue.