As Meta accepts responsibility for an error in India, questions continue to mount over censorship and press freedom in Bangladesh
Meta has apologised to the Indian government for the brief removal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s Facebook video, describing the incident as an unintended technical error in its automated content moderation system.
A top Meta executive on Wednesday apologised to IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on behalf of his company for “restricting” Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s post.
“I apologised to the minister on behalf of Meta for the error restricting PM Modi’s post,” Joel Kaplan, chief Global Affairs Officer at Meta, said in a statement.
According to sources, senior Meta executives met officials from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), including IT Secretary S. Krishnan, to explain the circumstances that led to the temporary takedown of the video.
During the meeting, Meta clarified that the removal was caused by an automated moderation process and not by any deliberate human intervention. The company expressed regret over the incident and assured the government that it would strengthen safeguards to prevent similar errors in the future.
The issue had drawn the attention of the Centre after the Prime Minister’s video was briefly taken down from Facebook. The government sought an explanation from Meta and asked the company to review its content moderation mechanisms to ensure that such incidents do not recur.
Meta is also understood to have outlined additional safeguards for high-profile government and public accounts, including enhanced oversight before any moderation action is taken.
The controversy has also attracted the attention of Parliament. A parliamentary panel recently questioned Meta over the incident and sought greater accountability from the company regarding its content moderation practices.
The government has maintained that digital platforms operating in India must comply with Indian laws and ensure transparency and accountability in their moderation systems.
The episode has once again brought the spotlight on the role of artificial intelligence-driven content moderation and the need for stronger checks to prevent erroneous takedowns, particularly involving constitutional authorities and public institutions.
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