Delhi High Court Registry Refuses To Drop Akshay Kumar, PVR and INOX From Bata's Defamation Suit

The Delhi High Court registry has refused to delete Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar and mutiplexes- PVR and INOX from the array of parties in a defamation suit filed by Bata India Ltd. in connection with the film Jolly LLB 2.

The registry has held that their presence is necessary for proper adjudication of the dispute.

The order was passed by the Joint Registrar Ajay Gulati, who dismissed applications filed by the three defendants seeking their deletion from the suit.

The dispute relates to the trailer of Jolly LLB 2, released in 2016 ahead of the film's theatrical release in February 2017. In the trailer, a character played by Anu Kapoor sarcastically mocks the protagonist, portrayed by Akshay Kumar, suggesting his low professional standing by referring to cheap footwear and poor-quality clothing.

In the original Hindi monologue, the brand name “Bata” was expressly mentioned. Bata issued a legal notice after the trailer's release and, upon receiving no response, instituted a defamation suit. The court later restrained the use of the word “Bata”, following which the dialogue was altered to substitute it with the word “phata” (torn).

Akshay Kumar argued that the allegedly defamatory dialogue was not spoken by him but by another character. He also denied actively disseminating the trailer on social media and disputed allegations that he acted with malice because he endorses a rival footwear brand.

PVR and INOX contended that they were merely exhibitors who screened the trailer pursuant to a certificate issued by the Central Board of Film Certification and were contractually bound to exhibit certified content. They further alleged that their impleadment was mala fide and intended only to invoke the jurisdiction of Delhi courts.

Bata, on the other hand, argued that the dialogue associated people of humble means with its products in a derogatory manner. It alleged that Akshay Kumar played an active role in promoting and disseminating the trailer despite being aware of its reach, and that exhibitors continued to screen the trailer even after receipt of the legal notice. Bata also submitted that a CBFC certificate could not provide complete immunity and that the exhibitors had failed to place their agreements on record.

The registry noted that the allegations against Akshay Kumar including conspiracy to exhibit defamatory content raised several triable issues. It held that the evidentiary value of the CBFC certificate, the contractual obligations claimed by PVR and INOX, and the objection on territorial jurisdiction could only be assessed at trial.

Accordingly, all applications seeking deletion from the array of parties were dismissed.

Case Title: Bata India Ltd. v. Subash Kapoor & Others

Case Number: IA nos. 5045, 6540, 11595 of 2017 in CS(COMM) 56/2017

For Appellant : Advocate Neeraj Grover, Mr. Angad Deep Singh (VC)

For Respondents: Advocate Dhanesh Relan, Ms. Shambhavi Pandey

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