Delhi HC dismisses Vimal Elaichi maker's plea on FDA notices

The brief

Context

Maharashtra's Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) issued show cause notices on August 11 to actors Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff, directing them to stop endorsing the mouth freshener "Vimal Elaichi" and to disclose their due diligence, on the allegation that the campaign was surrogate advertising for pan masala — a food product prohibited in Maharashtra. The manufacturer, PB Agro LLP, challenged the notices in the Delhi High Court, arguing the ad was visible in Delhi and that FSSAI lacked jurisdiction. On Monday, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma dismissed the plea on territorial jurisdiction grounds, holding that no substantial part of the cause of action arose in Delhi since the notice came from the Mumbai FDA to brand ambassadors residing in Mumbai over alleged violations in Maharashtra.

Key facts

• Maharashtra FDA issued notices on August 11 directing Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff to stop endorsing 'Vimal Elaichi'.
• The Delhi High Court bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma dismissed PB Agro LLP's petition on Monday.
• The court held the petitioner failed to establish that any substantial or material part of the cause of action arose within Delhi's territorial jurisdiction.
• The court noted the show cause notice was issued by FDA, Mumbai, to brand ambassadors who are residents of Mumbai, over alleged statutory violations in Maharashtra.
• Though the ministry and FSSAI, based in Delhi, were impleaded, no specific relief was claimed against them and no order of theirs was challenged or placed on record.
• The notice asked the actors to disclose their due diligence on whether Vimal Elaichi was an independent product or a surrogate advertisement for pan masala or tobacco.
• PB Agro called the notice arbitrary, unreasonable, discriminatory and violative of Articles 14, 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution.
• PB Agro said that apart from cardamom it manufactures only pan masala without chewing tobacco under the Vimal brand, never promoted through the campaign.

Timeline

1. August 11Maharashtra FDA issues show cause notices to Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff to stop endorsing 'Vimal Elaichi' and disclose due diligence.
2. After the notice (date not stated in the source)PB Agro LLP files a writ petition in the Delhi High Court challenging the notice, impleading the ministry and FSSAI.
3. Monday (date not stated in the source)Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma dismisses the petition for want of territorial jurisdiction.

Who has a stake

• PB Agro LLP — Maker of Vimal Elaichi; says its campaign complied with law and that action on the notice would cause irreparable harm without it being heard.
• Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, Tiger Shroff — Brand ambassadors directed to stop endorsing the product and to disclose their due diligence on the surrogate advertising allegation.
• Maharashtra Food and Drugs Administration — Issued the notice through its assistant commissioner in Mumbai over alleged surrogate advertising of pan masala, a prohibited food product in the state.
• FSSAI and the Union ministry — Impleaded as Delhi-based parties; the Centre's counsel said even FSSAI Delhi was not in a position to answer, and no relief was sought against them.
• Delhi High Court — Had to decide whether it could exercise writ jurisdiction over a notice issued in Mumbai for alleged violations in Maharashtra.

Why it matters

The ruling reinforces that a company's location in Delhi, or the nationwide visibility of an advertisement, does not by itself confer writ jurisdiction on the Delhi High Court when the impugned notice and alleged violations belong to another state. It also keeps alive the regulatory scrutiny of surrogate advertising, where celebrities endorse a permitted product under a brand name also used for a restricted one, and of the due diligence expected of brand ambassadors.