BJP lawmaker Baijayant Panda has introduced the Protection of Personality Likeness from Artificial Intelligence Misuse Bill, 2026. The legislation proposes mandatory disclosure for AI content and penalties of up to ₹10 lakh for unauthorized use of an individual's likeness. This move adds to the growing regulatory pressure on digital platforms to detect and label synthetic media more effectively.
A new legislative push has emerged to curb the misuse of artificial intelligence, with BJP lawmaker Baijayant Panda introducing the Protection of Personality Likeness from Artificial Intelligence Misuse Bill, 2026. The bill aims to protect individuals' faces, voices, and personal attributes from being recreated by AI without their permission.
As AI technology makes it easier to create content that looks and sounds real, the risk of impersonation has grown. This bill proposes a legal framework to distinguish between real and synthetic content. It mandates that any AI-generated imitation must be clearly labeled as such. Additionally, the proposal suggests using technological markers, similar to digital watermarks, to verify if a piece of content was made by AI. These measures are designed to help users identify synthetic media and reduce the spread of misinformation.
The bill outlines serious consequences for those who use AI to deceive others or cause harm. For offenses like non-consensual impersonation, fraud, or creating explicit content, the bill suggests criminal liability. This could lead to prison time of up to three years or fines reaching up to ₹10 lakh. However, the bill does provide exceptions to ensure that creative and public functions remain unaffected. Activities like genuine news reporting, satire, parody, and artistic expression are exempted, provided they do not lead to malicious deception or significant harm.
Impact on Digital Platforms and Compliance
This legislative proposal reflects the increasing focus on the accountability of technology companies. Platforms hosting user-generated content will face stricter requirements to implement rapid takedown procedures when false or unauthorized AI representations are reported. For investors, this signals a shift in the regulatory environment where the cost of compliance may rise. Tech platforms will likely need to invest more in robust detection tools and content moderation teams to meet these emerging legal standards.
This bill builds upon recent regulatory actions, such as the amendments to the IT Rules, 2021, implemented in February 2026. Those amendments already mandated that AI-generated content be labeled and set stricter timelines for platforms to remove unlawful deepfakes. By introducing this new bill, the government is signalling that the existing rules may be supplemented by more specific criminal and civil protections against identity theft via AI.
Investors should monitor how digital and social media companies adjust their internal systems to handle these requirements. The next key monitorable will be the progress of this bill in the parliamentary session, as it will clarify the exact compliance standards and liabilities that technology firms will need to manage in the coming months.