Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has issued an apology after the Indian government reportedly set a three-day deadline demanding accountability over content moderation concerns, including the removal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's video and the presence of harmful content on Meta-owned platforms.
The controversy began after a selfie video posted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for Gen Z audiences on July 23 was unexpectedly removed from Facebook, triggering widespread political criticism and raising questions about Meta's content moderation practices. The video was later restored, with the company attributing its removal to a technical error.
India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology reportedly considered Meta's explanation inadequate. During a meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology, lawmakers argued that a simple apology from the company was insufficient and called for greater accountability, with some members urging legal action if necessary.
According to reports, Zuckerberg's apology also acknowledged the broader challenge of preventing harmful content—including child sexual exploitation material and deepfake content—from appearing across Meta's platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. The company reiterated its commitment to strengthening content moderation systems, improving automated detection technologies, and addressing technical shortcomings that can lead to unintended content removals.
India remains one of Meta's largest global markets, with hundreds of millions of users across Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. As a result, regulatory scrutiny over platform governance, user safety, and content moderation has intensified.
The latest development underscores the growing pressure on global technology companies to balance automated moderation, user safety, and transparency while complying with local regulations in one of the world's fastest-growing digital economies.
