The Indian government is considering legal action against Elon Musk-owned artificial intelligence chatbot Grok for alleged non-compliance with laws governing the generation of objectionable content involving women and children, a senior government official said.
According to officials, the issue centres on Grok’s image generation capabilities, which were found to produce content that violates Indian legal standards. The government is currently seeking legal opinion on the appropriate course of action under existing information technology and content regulation frameworks.
“We are taking legal opinion on how we should proceed with this. Our view is that, like many other accounts on X, the Grok account generates content. Since this content falls afoul of the law of the land, it should be treated like any other account on the platform and taken down if required,” the official said.
Officials in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) said that while Grok has recently restricted its image-generation feature to paid and premium users, this step alone may not be sufficient to address regulatory concerns in India. The ministry has indicated that unless X formally declares this restriction as an official policy applicable to Indian users, enforcement action could continue.
The development highlights the growing scrutiny of generative AI platforms in India, particularly around safeguards related to harmful, explicit or exploitative content. Regulators have increasingly emphasised that AI-driven systems must adhere to the same legal standards as user-generated content on social media platforms.
Legal experts note that under India’s IT Rules and related laws, intermediaries and platforms hosting or generating unlawful content can face takedown orders and potential penalties if they fail to act promptly.
The case also reflects broader global concerns around AI governance, as governments worldwide grapple with balancing innovation and accountability. For India, the focus remains on ensuring that emerging AI tools comply with domestic laws, especially those designed to protect women and children from harmful online content.
The matter is under active review, and further action will depend on the outcome of the legal assessment and the platform’s response to regulatory expectations.
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