BJP Lodges Complaint Against Tejashwi Yadav Over Alleged AI-Generated ‘Deepfake’ Video Targeting Nitish Kumar and Samrat Choudhary

Patna/Bihar, October 25: In a fresh political controversy amid the ongoing Bihar Assembly election campaign, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has filed a formal complaint with the Election Commission of India (ECI) against Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav. The party has accused Yadav of sharing an AI-generated deepfake video allegedly designed to defame Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary.

The complaint was submitted by Bindhayachal Rai, convener and in-charge of the BJP’s legal and election commission coordination department in Bihar. According to Rai, the video, which was posted on Tejashwi Yadav’s official Facebook page, used advanced artificial intelligence techniques to create fabricated visuals and statements falsely attributed to the state’s top leaders.

“We have filed a complaint before the Election Commission regarding a deeply objectionable and misleading AI-generated video circulated by Tejashwi Yadav on his official Facebook handle,” Rai said. “The video maliciously portrays Samrat Choudhary and Nitish Kumar in a fabricated manner using AI-generated content containing false and misleading statements intended to distort public perception and influence voters during the ongoing election period,” he added.

The BJP has shared the link to the video in its complaint letter and demanded that the Election Commission take immediate action. The party termed the act as a violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) and a breach of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Specifically, it cited Section 123(4) of the Act, which defines the publication of false statements about a candidate’s personal character or conduct as a “corrupt practice.”

Labeling the video as a “deceptive deepfake”, the BJP has urged the Election Commission to direct Facebook/Meta to remove the video from circulation and preserve all associated metadata for further forensic investigation. The party has also requested the Commission to involve the Cyber Cell and ECI’s nodal officers to trace the source, creation, and distribution of the manipulated video.

Rai, in his statement, emphasised that such actions could undermine the credibility of democratic elections and mislead voters through the misuse of modern technology.

“I trust that the Commission will take swift and exemplary action to uphold the sanctity of the electoral process and ensure such violations are dealt with firmly,” he said.

This complaint comes at a time when political campaigning in Bihar has reached a fever pitch, with both the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Grand Alliance (Mahagathbandhan) intensifying their attacks on each other. The emergence of AI-generated misinformation in political discourse has added a new dimension to election-related challenges, raising concerns over the growing misuse of artificial intelligence in spreading propaganda and fake narratives.

As the Election Commission reviews the BJP’s complaint, political observers believe the case could set an important precedent regarding the use of AI in political campaigns and the legal accountability of those sharing manipulated digital content during elections.