Kamal Ghorui
Singer Jubin Nautiyal on Thursday approached the Delhi High Court seeking protection of his personality rights, alleging unauthorised use of his name and likeness. However, the court questioned why the Uttarakhand-based singer did not move a local high court instead.As reported by Bar and Bench, during the hearing, the judge asked Jubin’s counsel why a court in Uttarakhand was not approached, remarking that courts there “have not been abolished.” The lawyer argued that the Delhi High Court was approached because controlling authorities such as the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) are located in the national capital.The court, however, appeared unconvinced by the reasoning and questioned how Delhi would have jurisdiction if the singer himself is based in Uttarakhand.
‘Are you saying Google is not available in Uttarakhand?’
The court asked, “What is the reason for coming here? Court in Uttarakhand can’t call them (defendants) and pass directions? Are you saying Google is not available in Uttarakhand? You have to tell us this, no? Why Uttarakhand doesn’t have jurisdiction when you yourself are located there? Is it the law that because the ministry is here, whatever will be against them, all jurisdiction, whether from Madras, Calcutta or Bombay will come here?”The counsel informed the court that several other celebrities had also approached the Delhi High Court seeking similar relief. However, the bench observed that those were interim orders and did not create a binding precedent.
Allegations of unauthorised use of name, voice and image
In his plea, Jubin Nautiyal alleged that multiple entities have been exploiting his name, voice, image, likeness and other elements of his persona without authorisation, licence or permission.He claimed that such acts amount to infringement of his personality and publicity rights, apart from violating his registered trademarks, copyrights and other intellectual property rights. The court has yet to pass an order in the matter.
Celebrities increasingly moving Delhi HC for personality rights
Over the past year, several celebrities have approached the Delhi High Court seeking protection against AI-generated content and deepfakes allegedly misusing their image and likeness. Among them are Amitabh Bachchan, Shatrughan Sinha, Anil Kapoor, Salman Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Jackie Shroff, Jr NTR, Kumar Sanu, Nagarjuna, Daler Mehndi and Karan Johar. Despite the growing trend, the High Court clarified on Thursday that such interim orders do not automatically set a precedent for future cases involving celebrity personality rights.
