Delhi HC suspends website offering Ram Mandir consecration ceremony prasad

PTI, Jan 22, 2024, 4:07 PM IST

The Delhi High Court has ordered suspension of the operations of a website “preying on the public’s religious beliefs” and deceiving them by allegedly promoting itself as the official platform for delivery of ‘prasad’ from the Pran Pratishtha ceremony at the Shri Ram Temple in Ayodhya.

Justice Sanjeev Narula, while dealing with a lawsuit against the website by Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), observed that the defendant platform was functioning under the name of “Khadi Organic” which was deceptively similar to the plaintiff, a statutory body established for the promotion and development of textiles and the proprietor of “Khadi” trademarks, and directed taking down of all deceptive social media posts.

“It appears that Defendants No. 1 and 2 (the individual and company behind the platform) are attempting to monopolise the consecration event by preying on the public’s religious beliefs and devotion and deceiving them into transferring money to Defendants No. 1 and 2, using the Plaintiff’s goodwill,” the court observed in an interim order passed earlier this month.