New Delhi: The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on Thursday asked social media platforms to prioritise complaints from “authorised government agencies” about content with “potential implications for public order”. It also directed platforms to “label/contextualise manipulated, synthetically generated or misleading content”.
The advisory was first reported by MediaNama. ThePrint has seen a copy of the document.
Issued by MeitY’s Cyber Laws Division and signed by Joint Secretary Ajit Kumar, the advisory says “false, misleading, manipulated or out-of-context content” is being circulated “in relation to ongoing public events and developments”.
The advisory does not name the events, but comes amid protests against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, led by Opposition parties, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and student organisations.
Platforms have been asked to give “particular attention” to “old/archived photographs and videos being presented as current events”, “digitally altered or synthetically generated audio-visual content”, “impersonation of public authorities/persons” and content “likely to incite violence or other unlawful activity”.
The advisory mirrors a Delhi Police post from 26 September, which said a video showing a protest at Jantar Mantar and shared by accounts including Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut was “archived material from a past event”.
Under paragraph 4, intermediaries have been asked to “identify, prevent and not promote” unlawful information, run awareness measures urging users to “verify the authenticity, source and date of information before sharing” and “ensure timely cooperation with law-enforcement”. The list moves from clause (iv) to clause (vi), with no clause (v).
MeitY has sought compliance “with immediate effect” while saying the advisory respects “lawful expression and legitimate public discourse”.
The labelling direction goes beyond the rules MeitY notified in February. The amended Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 limited such labelling to synthetically generated audio, visual or audio-visual content and did not cover text. Thursday’s advisory sets no such limit. It also does not define “authorised government agencies” or explain how “enhanced diligence” differs from the due diligence already required under the IT Rules.
The Centre has previously acted against the CJP online. Its X handle was withheld on 21 May and restored by the Delhi High Court on 7 July after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said it had been blocked ahead of the 21 June NEET re-test.
Earlier advisories, issued after the Red Fort blast in November 2025 and on obscene content in December 2025, had reminded platforms of the legal consequences of non-compliance. Thursday’s advisory does not specify any such consequences.
The SIR row
The protests over the CEC and SIR were launched after a report by The Indian Express on 23 September. The report said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had formally objected at least 14 times over 10 months to decisions and orders of the Election Commission of India (ECI), saying they had been taken without their knowledge. The objections included changes to Form 6 for new voter registration and the centralisation of the electoral roll database.
The ECI responded that its SIR decisions were taken unanimously.
On 24 September, a day after the report, the CJP gave CEC Gyanesh Kumar 48 hours to resign. On 2 October, Delhi Police imposed prohibitory orders under BNSS Section 163 and shut at least 11 metro stations around Jantar Mantar after the AAP and student organisations gave a call for a protest. More than 500 people, including former Delhi chief minister Atishi, were detained. In Mumbai, Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray led peaceful protests.
On 6 October, INDIA bloc MPs marched to the EC’s office. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi led the protest and wrote on X, “Gyanesh, it’s done, bro. Time to resign.”
Gyanesh, it’s done, bro.
Time to resign.#IndiaAllianceMarch pic.twitter.com/9ZB6aJfakl
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 6, 2026
On Thursday, Opposition MPs reached Raj Ghat after being denied permission to protest at Jantar Mantar. They are scheduled to meet President Droupadi Murmu on Friday. The CJP has announced another protest in Delhi on 10 October.
The matter is also before the Supreme Court. On 5 October, the top court declined to suspend the CEC and issued notices to the Centre and the ECI. Senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing for the petitioners, told the bench that interim orders were needed, “otherwise the country will burn”.
The ruling BJP, meanwhile, has said the names of 13 crore voters were not deleted but flagged in the draft roll as dead, absent, shifted or duplicate.
(Edited by Chingkheinganbi Mayengbam)