Four Social Media Influencers Face FIR Over E20 Fuel Videos Allegedly Targeting Nitin Gadkari
Nagpur: Four social media influencers, including popular YouTuber Manish Kashyap, have been booked by Nagpur Cyber Police for allegedly spreading misleading information about ethanol-blended petrol (E20) and attempting to damage the public image of Union Minister Nitin Gadkari.
The FIR was registered after a complaint alleged that the influencers used Gadkari’s name in their videos without any factual basis, linking him to claims of fraud and illegal activities related to the country’s ethanol policy.
Apart from Manish Kashyap, the other influencers named in the case are Desi BoysNCR, Harshit Rathi and Anklesh Invate. According to police, the accused allegedly uploaded videos on platforms such as YouTube and Instagram, making claims about large-scale scams and irregularities connected with ethanol fuel.
The complaint stated that the videos presented misleading information and attempted to create the impression that violations were taking place under the government’s ethanol programme. Authorities alleged that Gadkari’s policies regarding ethanol were misrepresented in the content shared online.
The complaint was filed by Shishir Tripathi, head of the BJP’s social media cell in Nagpur, who described the alleged actions as a planned campaign to harm the minister’s reputation.
According to the complaint, the influencers allegedly used fake or misleading interviews with common citizens to make their videos appear credible. It further claimed that the content was aimed at increasing views and followers by using the name of a senior Union minister.
Police officials said that their preliminary investigation found the information shared in the videos to be baseless and claimed that the content exaggerated issues related to ethanol fuel while wrongly connecting Gadkari with alleged fraud cases.
The Nagpur Cyber Police have started a detailed technical investigation to identify the source of the videos and examine whether there was any larger conspiracy behind the circulation of the content.
The case comes amid ongoing public discussions and debates around E20 petrol, its impact on vehicles, fuel policies and India’s push towards alternative energy sources.
News source: Information for this article was gathered from a variety of reliable news outlets.
