Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari. File picture
| Photo Credit: PTI
The Nagpur Cyber Police have registered a First Information Report (FIR) against multiple social media content creators for allegedly executing a defamatory digital campaign targeting Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari.
The legal action stems from highly contested online posts regarding the government’s Ethanol-blended (E20) fuel policy.
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Confirming the operational details of the police intervention, Joint Commissioner of Police, Nagpur, Navinchandra Reddy, outlined the scope of the ongoing criminal investigation.
“An offence has been registered based on the complaint received. The FIR details the names of the individuals involved and the nature of the posts, as well as the obscene or abusive comments made by certain people. Police are currently investigating the matter…” Mr. Reddy stated.
The complaint was filed by BJP Nagpur City Social Media Cell Convener Shishir Arun Tripathi. According to the complaint, a YouTube video uploaded on July 3, 2026, by content creator Manish Kashyap allegedly contained false, defamatory and misleading statements regarding Mr. Gadkari and ethanol (E20) fuel, with the intent to mislead the public.
The complaint further alleged that similar misleading videos and posts were circulated through other YouTube and Instagram accounts, including ‘Desi Boys’, ‘Harshit Rathi’, and ‘Anklesh Inwati’, making what the complainants described as baseless and objectionable allegations against the Union Minister.
The complaint also claimed that the content had the potential to disturb public peace and create confusion among citizens. Based on the complaint and the supporting digital evidence submitted, the Nagpur Cyber Police registered FIR No. 0092/2026 under Sections 356, 352 and 296 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, along with Section 67 of the Information Technology Act, 2000.
Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convenor and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging the Centre to reconsider the rollout of E20 petrol for vehicles that were not designed to run on the ethanol-blended fuel.
Published – July 16, 2026 07:15 am IST
