The Centre on Friday issued a 72-hour ultimatum to X, directing the social media platform to remove sexually explicit content generated through its AI chatbot Grok and submit a detailed action taken report (ATR) to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
The directive follows complaints that Grok was being misused by users to generate and circulate obscene, indecent and sexually explicit images and videos, particularly targeting women and children. The Centre acted after Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi wrote to IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, flagging how easily women’s photos were being manipulated and sexualised using Grok’s AI tools.
In a strongly worded notice, MeitY said it had observed serious lapses in X’s statutory due diligence obligations under the Information Technology Act, 2000, and the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. The ministry flagged widespread misuse of Grok to generate unlawful content, warning that such material violated dignity, privacy and consent, and normalised online sexual harassment.
The Centre directed X to immediately remove or disable all content generated or disseminated in violation of applicable laws, strictly within the timelines prescribed under the IT Rules, 2021, and without compromising evidence in any manner.
MeitY also asked X to conduct a comprehensive review of Grok’s technical, procedural and governance-level safeguards to prevent the generation of unlawful content. The platform has been instructed to strictly enforce its terms of service and AI usage policies, including taking deterrent action such as suspension or termination of accounts found misusing the chatbot.
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The notice warned that failure to comply could result in X losing its safe harbour protection under Section 79 of the IT Act. It also cautioned that penal action could follow under multiple laws, including the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The ministry further sought clarity on the role and accountability of X’s chief compliance officer and questioned whether mandatory reporting obligations under the BNSS, 2023, were being followed. Copies of the notice were sent to multiple ministries, statutory commissions and state authorities, signalling a coordinated regulatory crackdown on AI-enabled obscenity.
In her letter, Chaturvedi said fake accounts were uploading women’s photos and using Grok prompts to digitally reduce clothing and sexualise them. Calling it a gross misuse of AI, she said Grok was enabling such behaviour by responding to unlawful prompts and urged the government to mandate stronger safeguards.
Reiterating its warning, MeitY said non-compliance would invite strict legal consequences against the platform, its responsible officers and individual violators, without further notice.
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