Delhi HC declines to grant interim stay on airing Netflix series Hasmukh

PTI, May 5, 2020, 12:40 PM IST

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday, May 5 declined to grant interim stay on the airing of Vir Das’s Hasmukh on Netflix, dismissing a plea that had claimed the fictional series maligned the reputation of advocates.

Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva dismissed the application moved by lawyer Ashutosh Dubey.

The main petition seeking a permanent injunction on the airing of the show is pending and listed for hearing in July.

Netflix, represented by advocate Saikrishna Rajagopal, said in the court that an injunction on the show would be contrary to freedom of speech and expression guaranteed under the Constitution.

It has argued that there are several judgments that say lawyers as a class cannot be defamed.

Hansmukh is a web series starring Vir Das in which, the protagonist, in each episode, murder professionals from various facets of life who have committed some wrong and then performs a stand-up act on such people.