Karnataka High Court Refuses To Quash FIR Against Amazon Over Alleged Counterfeit Sale Of Late Journalist Ravi Belagere's Novel
The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday (November 4) dismissed a plea moved by Amazon Seller Services Private Limited challenging an FIR lodged against it over alleged sale of pirated copies of late journalist Ravi Belagere's novel, 'Heli Hogu Kaarana', by unauthorised sellers using the platform.
Justice M Nagaprasanna while pronouncing the order said, "Dismissed".
A detailed copy of the order is awaited.
In May the court had stayed the probe.
The court was considering Amazon Seller Services' plea seeking to quash the FIR, wherein the e-commerce platform has invoked the 'safe harbour' protection under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000, as the primary ground.
Earlier senior advocate Sandesh J Chouta appearing for Amazon had argued that the company only acts as an intermediary platform. He had stated that it merely facilitates the sale of products by providing a platform for various sellers, who independently decide the prices of their products too.
It was also argued that Amazon can avail the 'safe harbour' provisions of Section 79 of the IT Act, which protects intermediaries from liability for third-party content hosted on their platforms, provided it has exercised due diligence.
He had placed reliance on the Supreme Court's landmark judgment in Shreya Singhal v. Union of India (2015), which upheld the constitutional validity of Section 79, noting that it grants intermediaries immunity from prosecution as long as they adhere to the due diligence requirements.
The complainant who is the copyright holder of the book (on behalf of Bhavana Publications), filed the complaint on the ground that Amazon and other e-commerce platforms are facilitating copyright infringement of her father's novel named 'Helli Hogu Kaarana', by allowing the sale of its counterfeit copies.
The FIR has also been registered against other platforms such as Flipkart and Meesho under Section 51(1)(b) [Infringement of Copyright] and Section 63[Offence of Infringement & Penalty] under the Copyright Act, 1957.
Along with the quashing of the FIR, Amazon has also sought interim reliefs of no coercive action against its officers in connection with the FIR and keeping in abeyance the Section 35(3) BNSS notice issued to the Company representatives on 05.05.2026.