The Bombay High Court on Tuesday adjourned the hearing of Union Minister Nitin Gadkari's defamation suit over alleged AI-generated deepfake videos linking him to the Centre's E20 fuel policy, scheduling the next hearing for August 5. Gadkari has sought ₹11 crore in damages, alleging that the circulation of the videos has caused significant harm to his reputation. The matter was heard by Justice Arif Doctor after Google informed the court that it had not yet received a copy of the petition.
During the proceedings, counsel representing Google submitted that the company had not been served with the petition filed by Gadkari. Following the submission, the court directed the Union minister's legal team to provide copies of the petition to all respondents and deferred the matter to August 5. Gadkari is represented in the case by Advocate Sandeep S. Ladda and has initiated legal action against Google, Meta Platforms, X and unidentified individuals allegedly responsible for creating and circulating the content.
The latest hearing follows an order passed on July 27, when Justice Abhay Ahuja of the Bombay High Court permitted Gadkari to proceed with his defamation suit against the technology companies and unknown persons over allegedly defamatory AI-generated and deepfake material. In his petition, the minister has identified at least 24 social media posts that he claims contain false, misleading and defamatory content, and has sought court directions for their removal from online platforms.
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According to the plea, the Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP) was introduced by the Central Government in 2003, while the implementation of 20% ethanol-blended petrol (E20) during 2025-26 has been overseen by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. Gadkari has argued that, despite serving as the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways since 2014, he has no role in formulating or implementing the E20 policy. However, he alleges that deepfake videos and AI-generated content falsely portrayed him as being personally responsible for the programme.
The petition further states that the alleged deepfake content falsely accused Gadkari and members of his family of deriving financial benefits from the ethanol blending programme. According to the suit, the content insinuated corruption, nepotism, conflict of interest, abuse of official position and misuse of governmental authority without any factual basis. Gadkari has contended that the material is fabricated, malicious and intended to damage his public image while exploiting his personality and publicity rights without his knowledge or consent.
At the same time, Gadkari has clarified that the lawsuit is not intended to suppress public debate or legitimate criticism of government policies or his public role. The petition states that citizens remain free to engage in fair discussion, analysis and bona fide criticism of governmental decisions. However, it argues that the disputed content goes beyond protected expression, describing it as false, fabricated and defamatory, thereby warranting judicial intervention and the removal of the allegedly unlawful material from digital platforms.
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