GS2The Hindu · Current Affairs
HC allows Gadkari to sue Meta, Google, X over ethanol posts
Bombay High Court allowed Union Minister Nitin Gadkari to seek a Letters Patent civil suit against Meta, Google, and X over alleged defamatory ethanol-related posts.
SP
Samachar Pathshala Desk
Published 28 Jul 2026 · 1 min
Key takeaways
- Letters Patent is a High Court’s charter-style civil procedure framework; “leave” means the court grants permission to file that suit under it.
- Cause of action means the set of facts for a legal claim; territorial jurisdiction is the court’s permitted geographic reach, and part of the claim was alleged to arise outside the Bombay High Court’s area.
- EBP is a government ethanol-blending programme with phases; Gadkari’s case says social media posts falsely connect him to EBP decisions despite his claimed lack of role.
What happened
The Bombay High Court granted Union Minister Nitin Gadkari permission to file a substantive civil suit under the Letters Patent framework against Meta, Google, X, and other unnamed entities.
Gadkari’s civil suit relates to social media content that Gadkari alleges falsely links him to the Centre’s Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP).
The UPSC angle
GS2
Territorial jurisdiction and Letters Patent leave in civil suits against online platforms
This case can be used to frame how civil courts address maintainability questions like territorial jurisdiction and cause of action when the alleged wrong—defamation-style content—appears on online platforms.
Related dispatches
The Indian Express
Gadkari can sue Meta, X over AI deepfakes on E20: Bombay HC
The Hindu
HC to hear Gadkari plea on deepfake posts on August 5
The Indian Express
Copyright strikes used to extort creators: HC asks Meta and Centre to respond
The Indian Express
PM video briefly blocked, Meta’s global officials told Centre