new delhi, Jul 27
The Bombay High Court on Monday permitted Union Minister Nitin Gadkari to file a civil suit against Meta Platforms, X Corp, Google LLC and other unknown persons over “defamatory” deepfakes and AI-generated posts uploaded against him.
The Union minister for Road Transport and Highways and senior BJP leader had filed a leave petition under Clause XII of Letters Patent, a procedural requirement wherein permission of the court is sought before filing of a suit, when part of the cause of action arises outside the territorial jurisdiction of the high court.
Such leave (permission) is necessary to enable the court to hear and decide a suit despite jurisdictional limitations.
Gadkari’s leave petition came up for hearing on Monday before a single bench of Justice Abhay Ahuja. His lawyer Sandeep Ladda submitted that online platforms have made alleged defamatory and deepfake content publicly available, including to users in Maharashtra. Since this content is accessible here, Ladda argued that a substantial part of the cause of action arises in this state too.
Justice Ahuja accepted the arguments and permitted the Union minister to file a civil suit against the online portals.
Gadkari, in his proposed suit, claimed there are several fake, AI-generated and defamatory content available online with regard to the ethanol-blended fuel issue.
He has contended that the material has caused “grave and irreparable” harm to his reputation, goodwill, dignity and public image, while also violating his personality and publicity rights.
As per the proposed suit, unknown persons have uploaded and circulated posts and deepfake content falsely portraying him as being personally responsible for the programme and that he and his family have financially benefitted from it. The allegations made in the posts are false, malicious and grossly defamatory without an iota of doubt, and is designed to create a misleading public perception against Gadkari, the suit said.
Through the suit, Gadkari intends to seek permanent injunctions against such fake and false content.
E20 petrol, which consists of 20 per cent ethanol and 80 per cent petrol, forms a key component of the Centre’s strategy to reduce dependence on crude oil imports, cut emissions, and encourage the use of domestically produced biofuels. The rollout of E20, however, has raised concerns over its compatibility with older vehicles that were not designed to run on the fuel blend. Critics have reportedly pointed to potential issues such as fuel system corrosion and lower fuel efficiency.
While automobile manufacturers have increasingly launched vehicles compatible with E20, concerns continue over whether models sold before 2023 can safely use the blended fuel.
