Chandigarh (Gurpreet Singh): The Mohali district court has issued firm directives to tech giants Facebook and Google to take down a fabricated video of Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann that recently went viral. The platforms have been given a 24-hour deadline to erase the misleading content and ensure that similar material does not reappear online.
According to the order, Facebook must block and delete all offensive posts as soon as they are flagged by the State Cyber Crime Department, while Google has been told to filter out the fake video from its search results. The court also cautioned that non-compliance could invite legal action.
The case surfaced after a manipulated video of the Chief Minister began circulating widely across social media. The Punjab Police, responding swiftly, registered an FIR at the Cyber Crime Police Station, Mohali, and issued official notices to Facebook and Instagram demanding immediate removal of the doctored clips.
The man accused of spreading the video has been identified as Jagman Samra, who allegedly posted multiple manipulated videos and images defaming the Chief Minister. Even after a case was filed, Samra continued to share new content online, reportedly uploading five additional videos and openly challenging authorities to prove they were AI-generated.
In a provocative online statement, he claimed, “This is only a trailer. Anyone who can show that these videos are AI-made will get a million-dollar reward.”
Police sources revealed that the State Cyber Cell first detected the suspicious uploads and traced them to Samra’s account. Once the complaint was lodged, he attempted to hide some posts but soon resurfaced on Instagram to post more material.
Authorities have warned that continued violations could lead to his social media accounts being suspended or permanently blocked. Investigators are now monitoring his online activities and analyzing the digital trail to uncover whether others were involved in the dissemination of the content.
Officials emphasized that the state will adopt a zero-tolerance approach toward the spread of misinformation and digitally altered media, particularly when such material targets public figures or aims to incite public distrust.
