The Delhi High Court has restrained the unauthorised use of actor and Member of Parliament Kangana Ranaut’s personality attributes, including her name, image, voice and likeness, after examining allegations of AI-generated deepfakes, manipulated videos and fabricated social media posts. Justice Vikas Mahajan directing Meta and other defendants to take specified steps against the identified content.
Background
Ranaut approached the Court alleging that various online platforms were circulating manipulated images, videos and false statements attributed to her. According to her plea, some material included sexually explicit deepfakes, while other posts allegedly portrayed her making statements or expressing opinions that she had never made.
She sought protection against the unauthorised exploitation of her identity and requested a dynamic injunction to address replacement accounts, cloned profiles and additional infringing links that might emerge during the proceedings.
After examining the plaint and supporting documents, the Court recognised the need to protect Ranaut’s personality attributes against unauthorised commercial exploitation and misleading digital content. It also noted that fabricated statements and manipulated audiovisual material could mislead viewers into believing that the content was genuine.
The Court observed,
“This Court further notes that protection to the plaintiff also extends against the impugned content involving manipulated audio-visual material and AI-generated content that falsely portrays the plaintiff making statements, attributing false quotes, expressing opinions, or participating in activities that never occurred in reality.”
Finding a prima facie strong case, the Court held that the potential injury to her reputation might not be adequately compensated through monetary damages.
The Court restrained the defendants, including unidentified operators, from unauthorised exploitation of Ranaut’s personality attributes and from creating or circulating impersonation content. Meta was directed to remove or disable access to the identified material within 72 hours of receiving the order.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and the Department of Telecommunications were also directed to issue necessary directions to internet and telecom service providers for blocking the identified infringing websites within the same period.
The matter is listed for further hearing on February 3, 2027.
Case Details
Case Title: Kangana Ranaut v. Meta Platforms Inc. and Others
Case Number: CS(COMM) 1100/2026
Judge: Justice Vikas Mahajan
Decision Date: October 8, 2026
