Did the Rajasthan HC Provide Relief to Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone in Defective Car Case?

Jaipur, Sep 10 (NationPress) Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone have received significant relief from the Rajasthan High Court, which has placed a hold on an FIR filed against them in Bharatpur. This legal action was initiated by a local vehicle owner who claimed that Hyundai Motors sold him a flawed car.

The FIR, which was filed recently, implicated both actors along with six company officials, alleging they misled consumers as Hyundai’s brand ambassadors. In response, Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone sought the Rajasthan High Court's intervention to dismiss the FIR against them. Their legal representatives contended that their involvement as brand ambassadors was strictly promotional and did not extend to the technical aspects of the company’s operations.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Shah Rukh Khan, argued that the actor holds no direct responsibility regarding the quality of Hyundai vehicles and it was unjust to involve him in this matter.

Advocate Madhav Mitra, who defended Deepika Padukone, mirrored these sentiments, asserting she should not be held liable for purported manufacturing flaws.

During the hearing in Jodhpur, Justice Sudesh Bansal noted that the FIR appeared to lack sufficient factual grounding. Consequently, the court issued a stay on the FIR, granting interim relief to both actors as well as the company officials involved.

The upcoming hearing is set for September 25.

This case originated from a complaint by a Bharatpur resident who accused Hyundai Motors of delivering a vehicle with significant defects, leading to financial repercussions. The FIR claimed that because Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone endorsed the brand, they too shared responsibility for misleading customers.

Nonetheless, both actors assert that such charges are not legally tenable, as endorsing a brand does not inherently imply liability for its product issues.

In the Rajasthan High Court proceedings, Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal appeared on behalf of Shah Rukh Khan, while Senior Advocate Madhav Mitra represented Deepika Padukone, and Senior Advocate Vivek Raj Bajwa argued for Hyundai’s MD Anso Kim.

The bench, after reviewing the arguments, provided interim relief to all petitioners by suspending the FIR filed in Bharatpur. The petitions presented by Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Anso Kim, and another company official highlighted the absence of specific allegations against them.

Furthermore, the defense pointed out that the complainant, advocate Kirti Singh, had been using the car for nearly three years, covering over 67,000 kilometers. They argued that if he had legitimate concerns, he should have approached a consumer court instead of filing an FIR. The petitioners insisted that initiating a criminal case under these circumstances was not legally warranted.