Delhi High Court hears Sameer Wankhede’s defamation suit against Netflix and Red Chillies over "Bards of Bollywood", questioning jurisdiction and rejecting the complaint.
Delhi High Court hears Sameer Wankhede’s defamation case against Netflix and Red Chillies Entertainment over the documentary "Bards of Bollywood" (Photo: Pinterest)
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Friday heard a defamation suit filed by IRS officer and former NCB Mumbai zonal director Sameer Wankhede against Netflix, Red Chillies Entertainment (owned by actor Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan), and others over the documentary series "Bards of Bollywood".
The matter was taken up by Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav, with Senior Advocate Sandeep Sethi representing Wankhede, while Senior Advocates Harish Salve and Mukul Rohatgi appeared for Netflix and Red Chillies.
At the outset, Justice Kaurav asked Wankhede's counsel to explain the cause of action for filing the suit in Delhi. Sethi argued that since the series was released for audiences across India, including Delhi, and memes targeting Wankhede were circulating in the Capital, jurisdiction was justified.
The court, however, disagreed. Justice Kaurav observed, "Your plaint is not maintainable. I am rejecting your complaint". "Had your case been that you were defamed at various places, including Delhi, and that maximum damage occurred here, we would have still considered it," he clarified. Citing Section 9 of the Code of Civil Procedure (CPC), the judge noted that the plaint had failed to clearly explain how the civil suit could lie in Delhi, particularly in paragraphs 37 and 38 of the petition. When Sethi sought time to amend the plaint, Justice Kaurav clarified: "
I am not giving any date. The Registry will give the date once the application is listed". The hearing then concluded. Wankhede has sought a permanent and mandatory injunction, declaration, and damages of ₹2 crore, which he has proposed to donate to Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital. He alleges that the Netflix series is false, malicious, and defamatory, designed to erode public confidence in India's anti-drug enforcement agencies by portraying them in a misleading manner. The suit also points to a scene where a character recites "
Satyamev Jayate" before making an obscene middle finger gesture. According to Wankhede, this amounts to a violation of the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971, attracting penal consequences.
