The Delhi High Court ordered the removal of online content that misuses the personality rights of Alakh Pandey, founder of Physics Wallah, on August 6. The interim order targets vulgar, commercially exploitative, and impersonation content across platforms including Google, Meta, X, and Telegram, following a lawsuit filed by Pandey. However, one YouTube video calling him "scamwala" was excluded from the injunction for separate review, according to medianama.com.
Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani passed the interim order after reviewing a tabulated summary submitted by Pandey’s counsel, which categorized infringing URLs into vulgar or sexually explicit content, commercial exploitation, and impersonation. Despite Telegram’s objection regarding a URL promoting a "PW Lectures" channel, the court directed its removal. The suit names intermediaries such as Google, Meta, X, Telegram, and unidentified defendants, reflecting widespread misuse of Pandey’s name, image, and catchphrase "hello bachho," including sexually explicit stickers, GIFs, impersonation pages, and coupon-code scams.
The ruling underscores the judiciary’s role in protecting digital personality rights amid rising misuse of public figures’ identities on social media and messaging platforms. This case highlights challenges faced by content creators in controlling unauthorized commercial use and defamatory impersonation online. The court’s action aligns with increasing legal scrutiny of intermediaries’ responsibilities to remove infringing content swiftly, setting a precedent for similar cases involving online personality rights violations in India.
The court’s interim order follows a previous day’s directive and is part of ongoing proceedings in the personality rights suit filed by Alakh Pandey. The next hearing will address the separate consideration of the YouTube video excluded from this order, indicating continued judicial oversight on content misuse involving the Physics Wallah founder.