The Delhi High Court has issued summons in BJP MP and actor Kangana Ranaut’s plea seeking the removal of obscene and AI-generated material allegedly circulated about her online, and indicated that it would consider interim protection of her personality and publicity rights.
Justice Vikas Mahajan issued summons to the parties named as defendants in the case on October 8. Ranaut’s lawyer told the court that the material included sexually explicit and pornographic graphics, fake news and AI-generated content falsely attributing statements to the actor and BJP leader.
The plea seeks protection against the unauthorised use of Ranaut’s identity and public persona online. Her lawyer said that memes and other objectionable satirical material were also circulating, but that Ranaut was not seeking relief against such content at the interim stage.
The proceedings place AI-generated media alongside more established forms of digital misuse, including impersonation and false endorsements. The allegations before the court concern not only the circulation of offensive material but also the attribution of statements to a public figure through fabricated content.
The court also issued summons in a separate personality-rights case filed by Telugu actor Vijay Deverakonda. His counsel alleged that third parties had commercially exploited elements associated with the actor’s identity without authorisation, including through the sale of merchandise. The submissions also referred to AI-generated social media posts, impersonation, false endorsements and abusive language.
The two cases are part of a growing set of personality-rights disputes before the Delhi High Court involving public figures. Actors Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan and Salman Khan, Art of Living founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, journalist Sudhir Chaudhary, podcaster Raj Shamani, Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and cricketer Abhishek Sharma have previously approached the court for protection of their personality and publicity rights.
The High Court has granted interim protection to these public figures in their respective cases, according to the proceedings cited in the report. Such orders can address the immediate use of a person’s name, image, likeness or other identity-linked attributes while a broader dispute remains before the court.
The latest proceedings also highlight the increasing difficulty of separating genuine public statements from fabricated digital material. AI-generated images, videos and posts can replicate a person’s appearance or voice and distribute false claims at scale, while commercial uses of a public figure’s identity can extend across social media, merchandise and online endorsements.
The court’s next step in Ranaut’s case will be consideration of the interim relief sought in the plea. The proceedings will determine the immediate protection, if any, to be granted against the allegedly obscene and AI-generated material and other forms of unauthorised digital use identified before the court.
