The Delhi High Court on Friday issued notices to Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Abhijeet Dipke, Saurav Das, Ashutosh Ranka and Ratna Singh on a woman’s complaint that her picture was digitally manipulated and circulated alongside an image of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The petitioner said that the images were created using artificial intelligence-based face-swapping technology and displayed during a CJP demonstration and circulated online.
Justice Girish Kathpalia passed the directions while hearing the woman’s plea, which sought removal and blocking of the alleged deepfake material. The court also directed the Delhi Police to protect the woman’s safety and ordered a status report on the action taken in the matter. Delhi Police registered an FIR following the woman’s complaint.
Delhi HC Directs Police To Protect Woman
The court ordered the woman to provide her exact residential address only to the investigating officer. The investigating officer was then instructed to communicate the address to the jurisdictional Station House Officer along with a copy of the court order.
The SHO was instructed to provide the woman with “complete police protection” in all possible and practical ways. The court also directed the Delhi Police to file a status report within one week as to what steps have been taken to respond to the complaint.
The court also directed the Registry to redact the allegedly objectionable web links from the petition and annexures. The petitioner was also asked to provide the investigating agency with the relevant photographs and videos in electronic form and the corresponding web links so that the authorities could investigate the allegations.
Meta Asked To Remove Alleged Objectionable Content
The Delhi High Court also issued notice to Meta Platforms and directed the company to remove access to the allegedly objectionable content from the social media platforms under its management in 24 hours. The direction is regarding the specific content identified in the proceedings.
The court stated that the issue of content takedown would normally fall before a bench dealing with civil jurisdiction. But in the present case, there was the situation of the woman’s safety because of threats she said she had received after the alleged images were circulated.
The court also said the woman could seek compensation from the organizers of the demonstration and that filing the present petition would not prevent her from pursuing any other legal remedies available to her.
Woman Alleges AI Deepfake And Threats
According to the petition, she said that unknown people took her photographs without her consent and digitally manipulated them. She claimed AI-based face-swapping technology was used to place her face on an allegedly vulgar and compromising image alongside the Prime Minister.
Her lawyer Umesh Sharma said that the manipulated images were displayed on banners during a CJP demonstration at Jantar Mantar and were circulated through social media. The complaint said that the material was accompanied by derogatory and sexually suggestive content.
The petition also alleged that the images and videos were uploaded on platforms such as Instagram. The material was circulated and threats were made about rape threats and intimidation were made, the woman said, she added.
These allegations are part of the petitioner’s complaint and have not been established by the court. The notices issued by the High Court seek responses from the named respondents as the proceedings continue.
Plea Claims Images Were Circulated Online
And she also claimed that versions of the manipulated photographs were uploaded and distributed on other websites, including pornographic websites, without her consent. She claimed that although an FIR was registered, the alleged content remained available online.
The petition thus asked for directions to find the culprits, block the links and remove the alleged deepfake material from social media sites and other websites.
Delhi Police informed the court that an FIR had been registered against unknown persons and assured the court that action would be taken expeditiously. The FIR was registered at the Cyber Police Station in New Delhi under relevant provisions of the Information Technology Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Court Seeks Status Report From Delhi Police
The High Court has asked the Delhi Police to submit a status report within one week, making the police investigation a key part of the next stage of the proceedings. The court’s immediate directions, it says, concern the petitioner’s protection from access to allegedly objectionable online material.
The case also provides an example of the legal challenges of AI-generated and digitally manipulated images, especially when image reproduction of a person’s likeness is done without the person’s consent. The Delhi High Court’s directions in this case do not constitute a final ruling on the cases against the CJP leaders and will be served with notices and will be able to respond as the proceedings progress.
