Delhi High Court: In an application filed by Indospirit Beverages Private Limited (‘Indospirit Beverages’) a leading manufacturer of superior quality alcoholic beverages in India, for permanent injunction restraining Praveen Aminigadda , a YouTuber, from trade mark infringement of ‘BROCODE’ as he had uploaded a video disparaging goodwill of Indospirit Beverage ‘BROCODE’, a Single Judge Bench of Tejas Karia, J., restrained Praveen Aminigadda, its agents and representatives from publishing, circulating, uploading or otherwise disseminating the said video on various social media platforms, including but not limited to the YouTube channel.
The Court stated that the actions attributed to Praveen Aminigadda were detrimental to the distinctive character of the Indospirit Beverages’ trade mark ‘BROCODE’ as the same was deployed for disparagement of a lawfully marketed product and further listed the matter on 4-2-2026.
Background
In the present case, Praveen Aminigadda operated a YouTube channel under the name ‘Sipp_Smart’ and an Instagram page under the name ‘sipp_smart’ where he uploaded videos and shared content that reflected his claimed expertise in alcohol and mixology. On the said YouTube channel, he had published a video containing disparaging content against Indospirit Beverages’ product ‘BROCODE’.
Indospirit Beverages received an email regarding the said disparaging, and defamatory video titled ‘B Code Exposed!!’, posted by Praveen. The said video asserted that ‘BROCODE’ was ‘poisonous’, ‘deadly’ and ‘not fit for consumption’. He had made the following remarks:
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“B-code is a new trending drink in the market. I’m not using the full name due to legal complications. You must have already understood which drink I’m referring to.”
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“Brandy is the only spirit made with grapes. Grapes are not used to make any other spirit. So, in the second set of ingredients, they are literally serving a cocktail and not just wine.”
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“The ingredients clearly say that ethyl alcohol is directly mixed in grape juice and water is added to dilute the drink. Ethyl alcohol must be generated from the wine fermentation process. But if ethyl alcohol is directly mixed in grape juice, it can be deadly. If you drink it, your health will be at risk.”
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“One of the main concerns is the alcohol percentage. A 330 ml bottle has 15 per cent of alcohol in it, which is deadly. It is not advisable to drink it in the current climatic conditions. If you drink it for one month, you will be hospitalized with alcohol poisoning.”
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“I have one thing to say about this drink. Avoid it as much as possible. If you want to drink it at any cost, then it’s your choice.”
Further, the comment section of the Impugned Video showed multiple viewers identifying the product in the said video as ‘BROCODE’ thereby confirming its association being drawn by the audience.
Analysis and Decision
The Court stated that Indospirit Beverages had established a prima facie case as the documentary evidence including test reports and regulatory clearances from Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (‘FSSAI’) and Bureau of Indian Standards (‘BIS’) established compliance with standards for safety and quality of itsproduct ‘BROCODE’.
Considering the comment section of the said video, the Court opined that demonstrated that even with the partial disguising of the brand name, viewers were easily recognizing ‘BROCODE’ as the intended subject of the impugned video, which resulted in direct injury to the Indospirit Beverages’ goodwill and reputation thereby constituting infringement of his proprietary rights. Further, the Court stated that the actions attributed to Praveen Aminigadda were detrimental to the distinctive character of the Indospirit Beverages’ trade mark ‘BROCODE’ as the same was deployed for disparagement of a lawfully marketed product.
The Court stated that if the said video remained accessible, irreparable injury shall be caused to the Indospirit Beverages’ brand, market standing, and consumer trust. Thus, the Court restrained Praveen Aminigadda, its agents and representatives from publishing, circulating, uploading or otherwise disseminating the impugned video on various social media platforms, including but not limited to its YouTube channel. Further, the Court directed Praveen Aminigadda to take down, remove, and disable access of the said video or any part thereof, or any other video in any language or in any manner, disparaging the goodwill of Indospirit Beverages and its product ‘BROCODE’ and also causing infringement of the trade mark ‘BROCODE’.
The Court further directed Google LLC, owner of YouTube, that if Praveen Aminigadda failed to comply the directions, then it should take down, remove, and disable access to the impugned video and should further file in a password-protected document, all the Basic Subscriber Information available with it in relation to Defendant 2, including the full name, registered email address, contact number, residential or business address, IP logs, registration details, and any other identification or Know Your Customer (‘KYC’) particulars.
The Court listed the matter on 4-2-2026.
[Indospirit Beverages Pvt. Ltd. v. Google LLC, CS(COMM) No. 1037 of 2025, decided on 6-10-2025]
Advocates who appeared in this case:
For the Plaintiff: Ankur Sangal, Aditya Ganju, Ankit Arvind, Shilpi Sinha, Priyanka Jaiswal, Samanyu Sethi and Sahil Safdar, Advocates
For the Defendants: Aditya Gupta, Advocate
