MS Dhoni files contempt charge against mobile company; alleges misuse of name

What’s the story?

Former Indian captain MS Dhoni has alleged before Delhi High Court that a mobile firm Maxx Mobilink Pvt Ltd was still using his name by projecting him as the brand ambassador despite the fact that both parties had terminated any sort of agreement way back in December 2012.

The court hauled up an official of the Mobile firm after the plea.

"Why are you (Maxx) not complying with the order? You have to follow the court's direction...both parties are directed to comply with the order dated April 21, 2016 before the next date of hearing that is July 28," Justice Manmohan was as quoted by PTI.

In case you didn’t know...

The court was hearing a petition filed by the former captain which sought initiation of contempt proceedings against the CMD Ajjay Agarwal for defying the order passed on November 17, 2014.

Incidentally, MS Dhoni was the brand ambassador of the Mobile company till December 2012. The Court had in its order in 2014 asked the company about the steps taken to remove Dhoni’s face from its social media sites which included Facebook and its website.

This recent direction as Dhoni’s lawyers informed the court that the company had not complied with the earlier orders.

The heart of the matter

Sanjeev Bhandari, the counsel representing Maxx Mobiles ducked all the allegations and maintained that his client had not misused Dhoni’s name in any which way.

Earlier in 2014, Dhoni and Rhiti Sports had filed a complaint in the court alleging that the mobile company had not paid the dues for using the cricketers' name and photo for its endorsements.

Further, in the contempt plea, Dhoni wanted all products seized which used his name and photograph for their sale and promotion.

What's next?

Following to the recent verdict, it would be interesting to see which route the mobile company heads to. In the long drawn out legal process, both parties have invested a lot and the eventual outcome would be closely followed.

Sportskeeda’s Take

Cricketers have always been a darling of companies and several brands have roped in famous cricketers to further their case. However, things are bound to get sour when either party decide to play clumsy, and this particular case is one prominent example of the same.

With the courts pronouncing its verdict, things could ease out, but it is not a good advertisement for the celebrities-brand association.