Calcutta High Court slams Dabur for insistence on orders to remove Real Fruit Power juice videos

Calcutta High Court slams Dabur for insistence on orders to remove Real Fruit Power juice videos

The matter will be heard on 8 May

The Calcutta High Court has expressed displeasure at Dabur India for its insistence on passing orders to pull down all URLs of the video made by content creator Dhruv Rathee on the company's product, Real Fruit Power juice.

In the Dabur India vs Dhruv Rathee case, Justice Ravi Krishan Kapur had recently ordered YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter to block public access to the video, in which Rathee depicted how the company’s fruit juice could affect the health of the consumers, especially children.

Appearing from Delhi virtually, Rathee's counsel, advocate Nakul Gandhi apprised the bench, "My client had made the video private. This would mean that if any user downloads the URL and uploads the video on its channel, my client will get a notification. And then he can directly delete that video. But if he pulls down the original video, he will not get any notification of the video being uploaded from other sources. But now, we have complied with the court’s order and have deleted the video.”

However, Dabur's counsel Debnath Ghosh objected to it. He urged the court to issue orders to Rathee to pull down several such videos, uploaded from other channels as well, stating that Rathee had originally created those videos.

Refusing to consider the request, the judge observed, "You (Dabur) must show there has been some malafide on Rathee’s part. If you can show that he has uploaded all those videos, then we will pass orders against him. I cannot allow a multinational company to pursue a case like this against an individual.”

On Ghosh's insistence, the judge shot back, "Mr Ghosh, please do not try this with me. You cannot start a Mahabharat like this. Let him file an affidavit."

Justice Kapur granted four weeks to Rathee to file the affidavit.

The judge had noted that the video made a clear and brazen reference to Real Fruit Power juice, using slides from an earlier advertisement aired by Dabur.

The court had stated, "The product of the petitioner has been repeatedly targeted both overtly and covertly in the impugned video. Any consumer would understand that it is the petitioner’s product. Prima facie, at the ad interim stage, even though the underlying intent of the impugned video may not be objectionable, in making repeated direct and brazen references to the product, the Lakshman Rekha or the Rubicon has been crossed.”

Advocates Debnath Ghosh, S Prasad, B Mukherjee, and N Banerjee appeared for the petitioner.

Advocate Nakul Gandhi represented Dhruv Rathee.

Senior advocate Utpal Bose and advocate Phiroze Edulji represented YouTube.

Meta India was guided by advocate Sakabda Ray.