A view of the Madras High Court. | Photo credit: The Hindu
Since YouTubers are not allowed to harm the reputation, goodwill and business prospects of a company under the pretext of checking its products, the Madras High Court ordered YouTube LLC to block the video inspection of the hydropower source.
Justice N. Senthilkumar also granted an interim injunction restraining the YouTube channel ‘Buying Facts’, allegedly run by Syed Imran and Syed Abbas of Chennai, from further circulating a video review of a water source produced by Nannir Water Source LLP.
The injunction was issued following a civil suit filed by the Theni-based company for alleged infringement of its trademark, defamation and defamation. The judge agreed with his counsel Ramesh Ganapathy that his client had made out a prima facie case for the grant of an injunction.
“Publication of the first respondent’s false claims would constitute an unreasonable restriction of the applicant’s freedom of business and would also violate the constitutional right to practice any profession, trade or business guaranteed by Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution,” the judge said.
He also wrote: “The defamatory and disparaging conduct of the first respondent would not only damage the reputation and good name of the complainant but also adversely affect the business prospects and business position of the complainant in the market and therefore the same would have to be protected.”
Mr. Ganapathy brought to the court’s notice that the plaintiff company is engaged in manufacturing of water treatment/treatment systems which deal with problems like hard water, salinity and so on in domestic, industrial and agricultural sectors.
Counsel argued that the plaintiff company’s products are eco-friendly, electricity-free and require minimal maintenance. The company protected its intellectual property rights by applying for trademark registration in 2022 and obtaining a certificate from the trademark registry in 2023.
However, referring to a video review of the product posted on the ‘Buying Facts’ YouTube channel on May 25, counsel said that the malicious and misleading statements in the video had created unwarranted doubts in people’s minds about the effectiveness of the plaintiff’s product.
He stated that customers would hesitate to buy the product after watching the video, saying that it would instead cause a huge financial loss to the plaintiff company. He said the Bombay High Court had in a similar case granted an interim injunction in favor of Marico Limited regarding Parachute Coconut Oil.
Published – 02 Dec 2025 20:51 IST
