The cyber wing of the Kerala police has filed a complaint against tech billionaire Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) and one of its handles over an AI-generated video that allegedly depicted the prime minister and the Election Commission of India (ECI) in a “misleading and derogatory manner”.
The incident comes at a sensitive time when Kerala is due for elections next month, with police saying the video could mislead voters and undermine confidence in the constitutional system.
According to a report by news agency PTI, the controversial video allegedly showed a letter from the Election Commission bearing the seal of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Kerala unit.
The 1-minute, 17-second video went viral from the stage and quickly turned into a political controversy in the poll-bound state.
Police said the video had not been removed from the X handle where it was originally posted, even after the matter was reported to authorities.
Police report video as misleading
The cyber department said in an official statement that the matter was reported through official channels, including the Election Commission of India itself.
“Upon review, it has been assessed that this content may mislead the public, undermine the credibility of constitutional institutions, and have the potential to adversely affect the conduct of free and fair elections,” PTI said in a statement.
Police added that a case was registered at Cyber Crime Police Station in Thiruvananthapuram city late on Wednesday night and investigation has been initiated.
The FIR reportedly named X account Laxmi N Raju (@valiant_Raju) as an accused in the case, along with other accounts including X Corp. Authorities said the investigation will now focus on determining who is responsible and taking action according to the law.
According to the FIR cited in the news agency’s report, the video was uploaded “with the intention of provoking public riots” and the platform continued to allow the content to circulate despite instructions from authorities to take it down.
Legal notice issued and removal requested
Police said a legal notice has already been issued to the intermediary platform for immediate deletion of the video under the provisions of the Information Technology Act and its rules.
The statement added that in accordance with the Model Code of Conduct, the Cyber Operations Department has taken urgent steps to prevent further circulation of the clip.
“The public is advised to exercise caution and refrain from creating, sharing or amplifying unverified or misleading content, especially during the election period,” police said.
The issue first came to light after the CPI(M) flagged the issue in its
The Election Commission earlier said the issue was a “purely administrative error” and that it had immediately fixed it.
