Salman Khan’s personality rights are set to be protected as the Delhi High Court plans to grant a stay on the unauthorized use of the actor’s name and photos. The move targets misuse for commercial merchandise sales.
The Delhi High Court instructed social media platforms and intermediaries to respond to Bollywood actor Salman Khan’s complaint regarding the breach of his personality rights.
Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora stated that she would issue stay orders against the defendants who have been exploiting Khan’s name, images, and other personal traits for the purpose of selling commercial products.
The Court said,
“Defendants 2,4,6 to treat the plaint complaint under IT Intermediaries Rules and notice was issued to them. Action is to be taken in 3 days. Defendant 2, who is allegedly violating the trademark, is directed to take into consideration the IP rights before taking its decision. I will pass stay orders on defendants on commercial merchandise,”
The Court inquired,
“What is your issue with fan accounts?”
Sethi responded,
“It is my registered trademark. They use photoshopped photos; these are not my real photos,”
The Court remarked that the photos had not been misused or presented in an indecent way.
Sethi countered,
“It was done without his consent; it is photoshopped,”
The Court then questioned an intermediary about their procedures when someone reports a violation of personality rights related to merchandise being sold online.
It asked,
“If the party directly writes to you to say that his personality rights are being violated because there is merchandise on your website which is not authorized, what’s your policy?”
The intermediary’s counsel replied,
“These links are already inactive. We act on orders. It is case by case; there is no policy in place, but we do it,”
According to the suit, the actor is seeking to stop people from misusing his identity for commercial gain, promotional activities, or any kind of unauthorised online or offline exploitation.
Salman Khan is the latest well-known personality to approach the courts in recent months for the same issue.
Many celebrities have recently taken legal action to protect their image and personal identity from misuse on social media, advertisements, and artificial-intelligence-based platforms.
ALSO READ: Salman Khan Shooting Case: MCOCA Court Denies Bail to Lawrence Bishnoi Gang Member
Earlier, yesterday, Bollywood actor Salman Khan has moved the Delhi High Court asking for protection of his personality rights in a case titled Salman Khan v Ashok Kumar/John Doe & Ors. The matter has been scheduled for hearing on December 11 (Thursday) before Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora.
In his petition, Salman Khan has requested the Court to issue directions against several parties, including unknown persons referred to as John Doe defendants.
He wants these individuals and entities to be restrained from using his name, photographs, voice, likeness, or any other personality attributes without permission.
Earlier, the Delhi High Court has protected the personality rights of several prominent figures, including Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Nagarjuna, Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, Karan Johar, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Jaggi Vasudev, and others.
These cases show a rising concern among public figures regarding deepfakes, manipulated videos, AI voice cloning, and fake endorsements, all of which can cause reputational and financial harm. Courts have increasingly recognised a celebrity’s right to control the commercial use of their identity.
ALSO READ: Black Buck Poaching: Rajasthan High Court to Hear Salman Khan’s Appeal on September 22
Khan filed a petition with the High Court requesting measures against various parties, including unidentified (John Doe) defendants, to prevent them from unlawfully utilizing his personality rights.
His attorney, Senior Advocate Sandeep Sethi, informed the Court that companies such as Apple, an AI chatbot, several e-marketplaces, and RedBubble have permitted violations of Khan’s personality rights.
He also expressed concerns about specific fan accounts that are using altered images of him.
Case Title: Salman Khan v Ashok Kumar/John Doe & Ors
Click Here to Read More Reports On Salman Khan