The Delhi High Court has ordered Meta, which owns and runs social media platforms Facebook and Instagram, to takedown two AI generated videos against former Union Minister Saleem Iqbal Shervani from Samajwadi Party, linking him with alleged gangster late Atiq Ahmed.

Single bench of Justice Tushar Rao Gedela also restrained Defendant no.2, claiming to be a journalist and Defendant no.3, re-publisher of the impugned videos, from publishing or re-publishing the said content till further orders.

The Court has further permitted the five-time MP to approach Meta in case the impugned videos are again brought into circulation by any other person or entity.

The development comes in a defamation suit filed by Shervani, who served as the Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare from 1996 to 1997 and the Union Minister of State for External Affairs from 1997 to 1998, through advocate J Amal Anand.

The Court was informed that the impugned videos claim that the former Minister took help from his "friend" Atiq Ahmed to crush the strike by his factory's labour union. The videos further claimed that Shervani "helped" Atiq to grow in power.

Shervani alleged that the videos are false, derogatory and in stark violation of the Norms of Journalistic Conduct, 2022.

At the outset, the Court noted the fact that said video is accessible to public has not been denied by the Defendant in his reply to the legal notice sent by the former Minister.

Finding a prima facie case, the Court ordered takedown of the videos and further granted liberty to the politician to implead such other Defendants, as may be necessary to halt the circulation of the impugned videos.

Case: Saleem Iqbal Shervani v. Meta Platforms & Ors. (CS(OS)-676/2026)