NEW DELHI — The Delhi High Court on Thursday (April 20) ordered YouTube to remove fake news videos about the grand-daughter of Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, in response to her petition to stop circulation of false rumours about her health, lawyers said.
Judge C. Hari Shankar ordered YouTube to ensure the videos about Aaradhya Bachchan, 11, were taken down immediately.
"Dissemination of misleading information about a child, especially as regards physical and mental health, is completely intolerable under the law," the court said in its order.
Three lawyers representing Aaradhya said in a statement that it was a landmark judgement as the court has upheld the privacy of a child.
"Videos are false, fake, defamatory, and uploaded with the intent of gaining eyeballs... and subscription to the channel," said Dayan Krishnan, one of the three lawyers.
Aaradhya is the daughter of actors Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and is frequently photographed accompanying them at public events.
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is a former Miss World and a brand ambassador for L'Oreal.
India has thousands of YouTube channels that tap into the growing demand for videos about celebrities. Often, the content can be controversial or factually incorrect.
An official spokesperson for YouTube owner Google declined to comment.
The federal government has been seeking ways to tighten tech sector regulation and wants companies to do more on content moderation on social media platforms.
ALSO READ: Fans upset after YouTube pulls Frank Ocean's upcoming Coachella livestream from schedule
