The Delhi High Court on Friday questioned the maintainability of IRS officer and former NCB zonal director Sameer Wankhede’s defamation plea against actor Shah Rukh Khan and his wife Gauri Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment, along with Netflix, over their web series The Ba**ds of Bollywood*.
Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav asked Wankhede’s counsel to explain how the plea could be maintained in Delhi. Senior advocate Sandeep Sethi, appearing for Wankhede, argued that the series was streamed across cities, including Delhi, and that his client’s reputation had been tarnished here. He, however, sought time to amend the plaint accordingly.
The court granted time to file the amended application before the matter is heard further.
In his plea, Wankhede has sought a permanent and mandatory injunction, a declaration, and damages against Red Chillies Entertainment, Netflix, and others, alleging that the series contained “false, malicious, and defamatory” content. He has demanded ₹2 crore in damages, to be donated to Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital for cancer patients.
“The series disseminates a misleading and negative portrayal of anti-drug enforcement agencies, thereby eroding public confidence in law enforcement institutions,” the plea stated.
According to Wankhede, the show was deliberately designed to malign his reputation in a prejudicial manner, particularly since the case involving him and Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan is still pending before the Bombay High Court and the NDPS Special Court in Mumbai.
