Meta under scrutiny : Govt cites progress on CSAM after Modi video row

Weeks after summoning Meta's top executives over the removal of a video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government said on Tuesday that its pressure on the company has paid off, with the IT Ministry citing greater action and sensitivity from Meta on child sexual abuse material (CSAM), PTI reported, citing sources.

The Centre has made clear that such content is a violation for which there is no safe harbour, the legal shield that protects platforms from liability for content posted by users, PTI quoted government sources as saying. "The message has gone home," the sources said, adding that the government's intent is not censorship but ensuring Indian laws are followed and that social media harms are mitigated. 

The remarks follow weeks of friction between the company and the Union government. In early August, Facebook briefly took down a July 23 video of Modi addressing students protesting the NEET-UG paper leak. Meta's chief global affairs officer, Joel Kaplan, met Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and apologised on the company's behalf, calling the takedown an error. Sources later told PTI that the apology had, in fact, come from CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who separately apologised for the spread of CSAM and deepfake content on Meta's platforms- the episode on which Tuesday's statement follows up. 

The same period saw Hyderabad police book Meta India head Arun Srinivas over reels linked to protests by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), allegedly, to contain ‘morphed’ content targeting Modi. Meta said it was cooperating with the investigation. 

Separately, students and digital rights groups said Instagram had restricted reels documenting the same protests, with the company citing government takedown notices issued under Section 79(3)(b) of the IT Act, the provision that strips safe harbour from platforms that fail to act on official notices.

Tuesday's briefing also touched on three other issues. On the WhatsApp username row, the matter is under examination as one that extends beyond a single platform to other messaging apps. On social media harm more broadly, the concern is shared by Australia, the U.K. and France, and platforms have a responsibility to strike the right balance. On AI labelling, a ministry official was quoted as saying synthetic content must be tagged, with responsibility resting at three levels, including with platforms, which are required to comply.

Talks with Meta on its content moderation systems are ongoing as per PTI inputs, with officials describing many of the underlying decisions as judgment calls that require continuous adjustment.