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The makers of Vimal Elaichi on Monday approached the Delhi High Court seeking to quash show-cause notices issued to their brand ambassadors Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff by the Maharashtra FDA for alleged misrepresentation of the product in ad campaign.
A single-judge bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma reserved its order on the issue of territorial jurisdiction to hear the matter.
In its petition, PB Agro said it engages services of reputed actors for promotion of the cardamom product under the brand Vimal and its endorsement agreements with them, and the company assures that the ad campaign is in full compliance of the applicable laws.
It said regulatory notices were issued by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) alleging that advertisements for Vimal Elaichi amount to surrogate promotion of Vimal Pan Masala, a chewable product banned within Maharashtra.
The plea said that the Maharashtra FDA had directed the actors featured in Vimal Elaichi ads to provide documentation demonstrating that Vimal Elaichi is a product different from banned pan masala products. It also called for a halt on the promotional campaign and for the withdrawal of related materials from digital platforms.
The counsel representing the petitioner argued that the August 11, 2026 FDA notice was sent only to the actors and not to the company itself despite the fact that the company alone is going to suffer irreparably due to any action taken by the state regulator.
The counsel said the petitioner was not even provided with an opportunity to be heard.
The company claimed that the Maharashtra FDA lacked jurisdiction to issue directions to halt the advertisement.
In its petition, the company also stated that surrogate advertisement allegations were baseless since Vimal pan masala has not been manufactured or sold in Maharashtra since 2001, and pan masala containing tobacco has been barred by the Supreme Court nationwide since 2013.
The counsel representing the Centre and CCPA (Central Consumer Protection Authority) contended that the petition should have been filed before the Bombay High Court since the show-cause notice has been passed by the Maharashtra government.
A single-judge bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma reserved its order on the issue of territorial jurisdiction to hear the matter.
In its petition, PB Agro said it engages services of reputed actors for promotion of the cardamom product under the brand Vimal and its endorsement agreements with them, and the company assures that the ad campaign is in full compliance of the applicable laws.
It said regulatory notices were issued by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) alleging that advertisements for Vimal Elaichi amount to surrogate promotion of Vimal Pan Masala, a chewable product banned within Maharashtra.
The plea said that the Maharashtra FDA had directed the actors featured in Vimal Elaichi ads to provide documentation demonstrating that Vimal Elaichi is a product different from banned pan masala products. It also called for a halt on the promotional campaign and for the withdrawal of related materials from digital platforms.
The counsel representing the petitioner argued that the August 11, 2026 FDA notice was sent only to the actors and not to the company itself despite the fact that the company alone is going to suffer irreparably due to any action taken by the state regulator.
The counsel said the petitioner was not even provided with an opportunity to be heard.
The company claimed that the Maharashtra FDA lacked jurisdiction to issue directions to halt the advertisement.
In its petition, the company also stated that surrogate advertisement allegations were baseless since Vimal pan masala has not been manufactured or sold in Maharashtra since 2001, and pan masala containing tobacco has been barred by the Supreme Court nationwide since 2013.
The counsel representing the Centre and CCPA (Central Consumer Protection Authority) contended that the petition should have been filed before the Bombay High Court since the show-cause notice has been passed by the Maharashtra government.
