Delhi HC Grants Interim Relief to Alakh Pandey, Orders Removal of Objectionable Online Content

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday provided interim protection to PhysicsWallah founder Alakh Pandey in a personality rights lawsuit, ordering the removal of online material that appears to be obscene, defamatory, or using his identity for commercial purposes without permission. Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani also instructed digital platforms including Google, X, and Telegram to share the Basic Subscriber Information (BSI) linked to the accounts and URLs flagged by Pandey. The information will help in identifying those allegedly responsible and allow further legal action.

The court issued notices in the matter after reviewing a detailed classification of the disputed online content submitted by Pandey’s legal team. It clarified that a more detailed explanation regarding the scope of the interim protection and why it was limited to certain categories of content would be issued separately.

During the hearing, Senior Advocate J. Sai Deepak, representing Pandey, presented a chart listing the allegedly infringing links and the parties against whom action was requested. While showing the disputed material before the court, he argued that the nature of the content itself demonstrated the misuse. Deepak also highlighted alleged cases of impersonation, including a Telegram channel operating under the name “Alakh Sir Lectures”, where Pandey’s name and image were allegedly used without approval. He further claimed that fake profiles had been created in Pandey’s name on platforms such as LinkedIn and X.

After considering the submissions, the court directed that content falling under categories such as obscene material, defamatory posts, and unauthorised commercial exploitation of Pandey’s identity should be removed from the platforms. The court additionally ordered Google, X, and Telegram to provide subscriber details connected to the identified accounts and URLs so that legal proceedings could be pursued against those allegedly operating them.

Pandey, who serves as the founder and CEO of edtech company PhysicsWallah, filed the lawsuit seeking protection of his personality rights. The plea alleges that his name, photograph, voice, teaching methods, expressions, and overall public identity have been used without consent across various online platforms.

The lawsuit claims that fake social media accounts, Telegram channels, edited videos, GIFs, stickers, and other digital content have misused his identity for financial benefit. It also alleges that some of the material is offensive and defamatory, potentially misleading students and harming his reputation. Pandey’s petition argues that such unauthorised use violates his personality rights, right to publicity, and amounts to passing off, causing damage to the reputation and goodwill he has built through years of educational work.

The case comes at a time when courts are increasingly dealing with challenges involving digital impersonation, artificial intelligence-generated content, and misuse of public figures’ identities online. The Delhi High Court’s interim order aims to prevent further misuse while the broader legal dispute continues, with the matter scheduled for further hearing in November.