Justice Navin Chawla said that artistic expression even in the form of a commercial speech cannot be curtailed on the basis of an oversensitive approach.
The Delhi High Court recently refused to stay the release of the Netflix series Tribhuvan Mishra CA Topper [The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India & Ors v Netflix Entertainment Services India LLP & Ors].
Justice Navin Chawla watched the trailer of the series and gave a prima facie finding that the show does not refer to the profession of Chartered Accountancy in any manner and hence rejected the argument by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) that the show defames Chartered Accountants (CAs).
“It is a series which appears to be more in the genre of comedy, and merely describes the main character as a topper in Chartered Accountancy Examination. It is neither intended nor can be perceived to be derogatory to the profession of Chartered Accountancy or the toppers or rank holders in the examination conducted by the plaintiff no. 1 [ICAI],” the Court said.
The Bench stressed that artistic expression, even in the form of a commercial speech, cannot be curtailed on the basis of an oversensitive approach.
“I, therefore, do not find any prima facie case in favour of the plaintiffs for grant of an ad interim injunction in their favour at this stage,” the Court said.
The Court made the observation while dealing with a defamation case filed by the ICAI and three CAs against the release of the series on Netflix.
It was stated that the show depicts the profession of Chartered Accountancy in an extremely vulgar and derogatory sense which is illegal.
The ICAI argued that they received emails objecting to this scandalous content of the trailer containing unwarranted innuendos to the profession. The reference to the services rendered by CAs as ‘debit and credit with reference to sexual services offered’ in the trailer is derogatory to the profession, it was contended.
Netflix argued that the web series is completely fictional in nature and there is a disclaimer at the start of the series which proclaims that the series has no reference to any individual or any real person dead or alive.
The streaming platform’s counsel said that within five days, they will also add a disclaimer that the series does not depict or refer to any profession.
Senior Advocate Amarjit Singh Chandhiok along with advocates Pooja M Saigal, Yatin Dua, Kaveri Rawal, and Deepti Bhardwaj appeared for the ICAI.