Hyderabad cyber crime police have initiated criminal cases against Meta India, its country head Arun Srinivas, and multiple social media handles due to alleged circulation of abusive posts targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This move has drawn attention as it is uncommon for local heads of global social media companies to be criminally implicated over user-generated content, a situation typically mitigated by 'safe harbour' laws protecting digital intermediaries.

Hyderabad cyber crime police have initiated criminal cases against Meta India, its country head Arun Srinivas, and multiple social media handles due to alleged circulation of abusive posts targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This move has drawn attention as it is uncommon for local heads of global social media companies to be criminally implicated over user-generated content, a situation typically mitigated by 'safe harbour' laws protecting digital intermediaries.

Hyderabad cyber crime police have initiated criminal cases against Meta India, its country head Arun Srinivas, and multiple social media handles due to alleged circulation of abusive posts targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This move has drawn attention as it is uncommon for local heads of global social media companies to be criminally implicated over user-generated content, a situation typically mitigated by 'safe harbour' laws protecting digital intermediaries.

The Hyderabad cyber crime police filed cases against Meta India, its India head Arun Srinivas, and several social media handles on Thursday (July 30) for allegedly circulating abusive posts against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 

The move surprised legal observers because criminal action against the local head of a global social media company over user-generated content is highly unusual, and such politically sensitive cases have more often emanated from the Centre or BJP-ruled states. 

Telangana's Congress government subsequently relieved V. Aravind Babu, deputy commissioner of police (cyber crime), of his duties at the Hyderabad commissionerate and directed him to report to the police headquarters on Friday evening. 

While the transfer came a day after the FIRs, the government has not officially linked the two developments.

For those uninitiated, on July 29, the Hyderabad cyber crime police received complaints from two Telangana BJP leaders alleging that morphed and abusive videos targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi were being circulated on Facebook and Instagram. 

Acting on the complaints, police registered two FIRs the next day under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Information Technology Act. The police are examining whether Meta failed to act against the allegedly unlawful content even after being notified. Meta has said it is cooperating with the investigation.

The cases came to light on July 31, making them one of the rare instances in India where the local head of a global technology company has been named in a criminal case over user-generated content. 

According to official sources, the development irked the Chief Minister and the police top brass as the Congress government had broadly supported the recent youth protests, THE WEEK was told.

Indian law provides "safe harbour" protection to digital intermediaries such as WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram, shielding them from liability for third-party content if they comply with due diligence requirements. Consequently, platform executives are not ordinarily named in criminal cases arising from user-generated posts, making the Hyderabad police's action an extraordinary step that has drawn nationwide attention. However, BJP leaders have backed the move on social media, saying strict action should be taken against those who allegedly abused the Prime Minister.

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