Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has received authorization from the Bombay High Court to proceed with a civil defamation lawsuit against Meta Platforms, X Corp, Google LLC, and several unidentified individuals over AI-generated deepfake content circulated online.
The single-judge bench of Justice Abhay Ahuja granted the procedural approval on Monday, clearing the legal path for the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways to seek judicial relief against the technology platforms.
Jurisdictional Approval Granted
The court’s clearance came in response to a leave petition filed under Clause XII of the Letters Patent. This legal procedure requires prior permission from the court to institute a suit when a portion of the cause of action occurs beyond its territorial jurisdiction.
Advocate Sandeep Ladda, representing Gadkari, informed the court that the disputed online material remains accessible to the general public across Maharashtra. Ladda argued that because the content is actively viewable within the state, a substantial part of the cause of action legally originates within the high court’s jurisdiction. Justice Ahuja accepted the submission, granting leave to file the suit.
Targeted Content And Requested Relief
The proposed lawsuit centers on digital media surrounding the federal ethanol-blended fuel program. According to the petition, unknown entities created and distributed synthetic media and manipulated posts alleging that Gadkari was individually responsible for the policy and had personally and financially benefited from it alongside his family.
The suit asserts that these claims are entirely untrue, malicious, and engineered to deceive the public regarding the senior politician’s actions. Through the impending lawsuit, Gadkari aims to secure permanent court injunctions to restrain the platforms and creators from hosting or spreading the deceptive material.
