NEW DELHI: Mehta has restricted access in India to two artificial intelligence-generated videos featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani that were originally posted by the Congress party. The social media conglomerate said the action was taken on its platforms Instagram and Facebook following takedown notices issued by the Delhi Police.
In a submission to the Lumen Database, a transparency project sponsored by Harvard University, Meta made its position on this restriction clear. The company said that while the content in question did not violate its internal community standards, it was forced to act to maintain its legal position. Meta said failure to comply with the notice it received on Dec. 18 risks losing its “safe harbor” protection and could expose local staff to criminal penalties.
Safe harbor provisions are important for social media intermediaries because they exempt them from liability for content posted by third parties. However, police invoked Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology Act, which states that platforms will be stripped of this status if they fail to remove content used for “illegal activities” as directed by the government. The notification also cited Rule 3(1)(d) of the IT Rules, which requires platforms to remove flagged content within 36 hours.
Delhi Police has alleged that the AI-generated video violates certain provisions of the People's Republic of India Act (BNS) and the IT Act. The authorities cited Article 336(4) of the BNS regarding penalties for forgery and Article 340(2) regarding unauthorized use of forged electronic records. Further, Section 66C of the IT Act, which covers identity theft, was invoked against these posts.
The development follows recent amendments to IT rules notified by the Union government on October 22 to strengthen protocols for online content removal. Under the revised framework, removal orders must be issued by a court or by a government official below the rank of joint secretary or chief secretary. In case of police-initiated action, the notification must originate from a police officer with at least the rank of Deputy Inspector General (DIG).
