Providing interim relief against piracy for the Salman Khan starrer Bollywood film Radhe , the Delhi High Court has restrained individuals from illegally circulating the film on WhatsApp and other social media platforms.
The order is in response to an instant suit filed by Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd in the Delhi High Court for permanent injunction, rendition of accounts and damages for the infringement of its exclusive license and exploitation rights in the film ‘Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai.’
The order passed by a single judge bench of Justice Sanjeev Narula of the Delhi High Court has restrained private individuals from “unauthorisedly storing, reproducing, communicating, disseminating, circulating, copying, selling, offering for sale or making available copies of the film or any other portion thereof, through WhatsApp or any other means or modes,” that may infringe Zee’s copyright in the film.
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It has also directed WhatsApp and other social media platforms to suspend service, ultimately terminate and permanently delete the WhatsApp accounts of individuals selling pirated copies of the film.
The Court has also directed Internet Service Providers to disclose subscriber details of the offenders with Zee to initiate further legal action against them.
Zee had previously filed an FIR before the Inspector General of Police, Maharashtra Cyber Digital Crime Unit under the provisions of the Copyright Act, 1957 against known and unknown persons for selling pirated version of the film.
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Zee had purchased the broadcast rights of the film from production company Salman Khan Ventures Limited in February. The film was released on May 13 in theatres worldwide and on streaming service Zee5 – for its premium subscribers – along with Zee’s pay-per-view service ZeePlex for ₹249, and DTH services as the studio adopted a hybrid release strategy amid the Covid-19 pandemic when cinemas are shut down.