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New Delhi: The controversy surrounding the temporary removal of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Facebook reel has intensified, with the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology warning Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to apologise within three days or face possible action to the company’s legal protections in India.

The warning comes after the Prime Minister’s video, which addressed the country’s youth and outlined measures against paper leaks, was briefly unavailable on Facebook before being restored. Meta later said the removal was the result of an error.

Safe harbour protection warning

Parliamentary panel chairman Nishikant Dubey said Meta could risk losing the “safe harbour” protection available to intermediaries under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act if the company fails to issue an apology.

Safe harbour protection shields online platforms from liability for third-party content hosted on their services, provided they comply with due diligence requirements and directions issued under Indian law.

Dubey described the temporary removal of the Prime Minister’s video as a serious issue and said the panel expected an apology from Zuckerberg.

Government to raise concerns with Meta

The Centre also confirmed that Meta’s global team is visiting India on August 5 and 6 for meetings with government officials. According to IT Secretary S. Krishnan, the government plans to raise several issues, including the handling of child sexual exploitation and abuse material (CSAM), as well as the temporary restriction of prominent accounts on Meta’s platforms.

Officials said the discussions would focus on understanding why such incidents occurred and the measures Meta intends to adopt to prevent similar issues in the future.

Meta says removal was an error

Following criticism over the incident, Meta restored the Prime Minister’s reel and stated that it had been removed due to an algorithmic or technical error.

Lawmakers who attended the Parliamentary Committee meeting said a Meta executive expressed regret over the incident and assured members that such an error would not be repeated.