Delhi High Court Registry Refuses Deletion of Akshay Kumar, PVR and INOX in Bata Defamation Suit

The Delhi High Court registry refused to drop Akshay Kumar, PVR, and INOX from Bata India Ltd.’s defamation suit over the 2016 trailer of Jolly LLB 2, holding their presence necessary for proper adjudication.

The suit concerns a sarcastic monologue in the trailer that expressly used the brand name “Bata.” The defendants argued they were impleaded with mala fide intent, relying on CBFC certification and the limited role of exhibitors.

Bata contended that the trailer was commercially exploited and damaged its reputation.

The registry held that issues of evidence, jurisdiction and legal obligations raise triable questions that can only be examined at trial, and dismissed all deletion applications.

[Bata India Ltd. v. Subash Kapoor & Ors.]