Vimal Ad Controversy: FDA Chief Tukaram Mundhe Says Shah Rukh, Ajay Devgn, Tiger Shroff Are ‘Violators Of Law’

Maharashtra FDA commissioner Tukaram Mundhe said Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff will not escape action because they are celebrities. He said the agency sees the Vimal Elaichi ad as a backdoor pitch for Vimal Pan Masala, which is banned in the state.

Maharashtra FDA acts against Vimal ad stars

The Maharashtra FDA has issued show-cause notices to the three actors and has already begun adjudication and prosecution proceedings in one case where an actor did not reply, commissioner Tukaram Mundhe told NDTV.

“According to you they may be stars, but according to me they are only advertisers in this case. So I am looking at them as violators of the law, and the law will take its own course. That’s why we have started taking action,” Mundhe said.

The regulator’s case turns on its view that the Vimal Elaichi advertisement amounted to surrogate advertising for Vimal Pan Masala. That has put the focus not just on the manufacturer but also on the endorsers who appeared in the campaign.

Notices and responses

The notices went out on August 11. The actors were given 15 days to respond.

Mundhe said two of the three actors replied and one did not, but he did not identify them. “We have taken this action as per the law,” he said.

Action has already moved ahead in one case. “In one case where they have not responded, we are starting the adjudicating and prosecution proceedings,” Mundhe added.

The two actors who replied argued that the responsibility rested with the manufacturer. Mundhe said the FDA will hear those responses before taking the next step.

The hearing will be handled by the officer who issued the notices. “We are giving them a hearing. My officer, the assistant commissioner who issued the notices, will be giving the hearing,” Mundhe said.

Asked specifically about Shah Rukh Khan’s side, Mundhe said, “Most likely he has not responded, but I’m not too sure about it.”

Law on celebrity endorsers

Mundhe rejected the claim that celebrities bear no responsibility because a manufacturer stands behind the product.

He argued that food safety rules place a clear legal duty on advertisers. “There are clearly advertising regulations as per the Food Safety Act. [The regulations] talk about who the advertiser is, and there is a responsibility very specifically cast upon the person or institution who is advertising. There is a responsibility cast upon the person who is advertising it, including to take due diligence about what he or she is endorsing. To say that it is not upon them is wrong… Not only morally, but legally I’m talking about, because I am here as a regulator,” Mundhe said.

Delhi High Court’s order in the Vimal ad

The dispute has already reached court. On September 14, the Delhi High Court dismissed a petition by PB Agro LLP, the master licensee for Vimal Elaichi.

PB Agro LLP had asked the court to set aside the notices sent to Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff. Its plea questioned the Maharashtra FDA’s action against the three actors.

Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma held that the Delhi High Court lacked territorial jurisdiction in the matter. The notices, the court held, had been issued by the Maharashtra FDA in Mumbai.