Instagram restricts cartoonist Rakesh Ranjan’s account in India, citing repeated legal takedowns

An Instagram notice dated October 27, 2026, says cartoonist Rakesh Ranjan’s account, @cartoonistrrsofficial, is “unavailable in India.” Ranjan shared the notice on X while asking what was happening in India. The notice says Instagram has “repeatedly had to restrict access” to content posted by the account under Indian legal requirements.

The notice links the restriction to Indian legal requirements. It does not identify the authority, legal provision, order or affected posts. Those details would help establish what prompted the account-level restriction and how broadly it applies.

What the notice says

The screenshot names India’s Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (IT Rules). The displayed title is truncated after “Digital Media Ethic…”. The notice gives no specific rule number or order reference.

The wording refers to repeated restrictions on content posted by the account, while the notice says the account itself is unavailable in India. It does not clarify whether particular posts or a series of restrictions led to the account-level action.

Earlier restrictions on Ranjan’s satire

Digital rights organisation SFLC.in reported in September 2026 that Ranjan received a takedown notice in August. It said the posts depicted a comic representation of a viral reel featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

SFLC.in also reported that Meta restricted another satirical image showing a Melody chocolate on the Prime Minister’s forehead. The report documents earlier content restrictions. It does not establish whether those posts are referenced in the October 27 notice or whether the same legal basis applies.

Political cartoonists have faced online restrictions before

Ranjan’s case recalls the 2011 suspension of political cartoonist Aseem Trivedi’s website, Cartoons Against Corruption. A January 2012 report by The Times of India said domain registrar BigRock had suspended the website. An email from the registrar cited a complaint from the Mumbai Crime Branch about content concerning India’s flag and emblem. Trivedi subsequently moved his cartoons to Blogger.

Trivedi was arrested in September 2012 following complaints about his cartoons. The Maharashtra government told the Bombay High Court in October 2012 that it had decided to drop the sedition charge. The state said proceedings concerning three of the seven cartoons would continue under other legal provisions, according to The Indian Express.

The two cases involve different documented mechanisms. Trivedi’s website was suspended by a domain registrar following a police complaint. Instagram’s notice about Ranjan says the platform repeatedly restricted his content under Indian legal requirements but identifies no authority or order. The comparison raises questions about how restrictions on political cartoons are initiated, communicated to creators and made open to scrutiny.

Also read:

• The Wire’s Instagram Account Briefly Blocked In India Over Satirical Cartoon Of PM Narendra Modi
• How India’s content takedown framework was built and where It has gone wrong #NAMA

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