Meta has apologized following the temporary removal of a video posted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his official Facebook account. The video, which featured the Prime Minister addressing students regarding the NEET-UG 2026 examination paper leak, was briefly unavailable to users in India. During the period it was restricted, visitors to the post saw a notice stating that access had been withheld in the region following a legal request. Meta quickly restored the content and attributed the incident to a technical error within its automated moderation systems, rather than an intentional policy decision.
The Indian government has taken the incident seriously, with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) summoning Meta’s global head of public policy to provide a formal explanation. While Meta has expressed regret and confirmed the removal was a mistake, government officials have described the company’s initial explanation as inadequate. The incident has prompted broader discussions regarding the platform's content moderation practices and its accountability to the public.
In response to the controversy, Meta has informed the government that it is implementing enhanced safeguards for accounts belonging to the Prime Minister and other prominent individuals. These new protocols involve multiple layers of oversight and mandatory reviews by senior company officials before any moderation action is taken on such accounts. The government continues to seek further details on how the automated systems failed to recognize the verified status of the Prime Minister's account and why users were shown a misleading legal-request notice.