On Monday, September 14, the Delhi High Court rejected a petition filed by PB Agro LLP, the company behind the Vimal Elaichi brand, that sought to overturn show‑cause notices served to its celebrity endorsers Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration.
PB Agro LLP argued that the notices, dated August 11, targeted only the actors and not the company itself, exposing the brand to severe commercial loss without any opportunity for a hearing. The petitioner maintained that the advertisements complied with all applicable regulations and that the Maharashtra FDA’s claim of surrogate promotion of the banned Vimal Pan Masala was unfounded.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, however, found the writ non‑maintainable on jurisdictional grounds. The court observed that the show‑cause notice originated from the Maharashtra FDA in Mumbai and was addressed to the brand ambassadors, who reside in Maharashtra. Since the alleged statutory violations occurred within the state, the appropriate forum, according to the doctrine of forum conveniens, is a court in Maharashtra, not Delhi.
The order dismissed the petition without addressing the merits of the challenge and also disposed of any pending applications. The court noted that even though the petitioner named the Ministry of Health and the FSSAI as parties, no specific relief against them was claimed, nor were any of their orders contested.
This decision leaves the actors to respond to the Maharashtra regulator’s demands, while PB Agro LLP must now approach the appropriate state forum to contest the allegations. The ruling underscores the importance of filing legal actions in the correct territorial jurisdiction, especially in cases involving state‑level regulatory bodies and high‑profile brand ambassadors.
Image for illustration purposes only
📰 Source: Siasat Gulf