Delhi HC steps in as Salman Khan flags misuse of personality rights online

The Delhi High Court on Thursday directed social media platforms and online intermediaries to act on a complaint filed by actor Salman Khan, who has alleged unauthorised commercial use of his name, images and personality attributes. The court said it would itself issue stay orders against entities selling merchandise or content that violates the actor’s rights.

Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora asked several platforms, identified as defendants in the suit, to process Khan’s complaint under the IT Intermediary Rules and take action within three days. One defendant accused of trademark violation was specifically instructed to consider the actor’s intellectual property rights before taking any further decision.

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Khan approached the court seeking directions to restrain multiple entities, including unknown (John Doe) parties, from exploiting his personality without consent. His counsel, Senior Advocate Sandeep Sethi, informed the court that platforms including Apple, certain AI chatbots, e-marketplaces and RedBubble were hosting or permitting content and merchandise that infringed Khan’s rights.

Sethi also objected to fan-run accounts using photoshopped images of the actor. The court questioned the basis of this objection, noting that the images were not used in an offensive manner. Sethi responded that the images were altered and used without consent and that Khan’s persona is a registered trademark.

The court also sought clarity from an intermediary on how it responds when a complainant flags unauthorised use of their personality rights. The platform’s counsel said the links in question had already been deactivated, adding that they generally act on orders and follow a case-by-case approach rather than a fixed policy.

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Khan joins a growing list of public figures who have recently sought legal protection against misuse of their identity for commercial gain. In recent months, the High Court has granted similar protections to celebrities such as Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Nagarjuna, Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, Karan Johar, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Jaggi Vasudev.

Khan was represented by Senior Advocate Sandeep Sethi along with advocates Nizam Pasha and Shreya Sethia, supported by a legal team from DSK Legal.

The case underscores the judiciary’s growing focus on personality rights as digital commerce, AI tools and user-generated content blur the boundaries of consent and commercial exploitation. With deepfakes, photoshopped images and unauthorised merchandise proliferating online, courts are increasingly intervening to prevent misuse of celebrity identities.