Dettol takes social media influencers to Delhi High Court over disparaging claims on podcast

Reckitt Benckiser India, which owns Dettol, has moved a plea before the Delhi High Court against dermatologist Dr. Manjot Marwah and social media influencers Raj Shamani and Ritik Chaturvedi for allegedly making "false, misleading, disparaging and defamatory" statements about Dettol Antiseptic Liquid (DAL) in a podcast. .The case was mentioned this morning for an urgent listing and came to be listed before Justice Saurabh Banerjee in the afternoon. .Despite hearing Senior Advocate Chander M Lall for close to an hour, the judge refused to pass an ad interim order and listed the case for hearing at 12:30 tomorrow. The Court noted that notice has been served to the defendants via email and WhatsApp and gave them a chance to respond by tomorrow. "Considering the factual matrix involved as also the (fact that) Defendant-1 (Marwah) claims herself to be a dermatologist and is well aware of the proceedings, one more chance is being given to the defendants to appear at 12:30 PM tomorrow," the Court said. .The controversy centers around a podcast episode titled "Skin Mistakes You Didn't Know! Tanning & Sunburn EXPOSED" released on April 1, 2025, and a subsequent Instagram reel titled "Never Use Dettol in your Skin" posted on April 5, 2025. According to Reckitt, Dr. Marwah claimed that Dettol is merely a floor cleaning liquid that should not be used on human skin and that it "burns wounds and delays healing."Marwah, who claims to be a highly awarded dermatologist with an MD in Dermatology and over 783,000 Instagram followers, allegedly posted an Instagram story on April 5 referring to a Philippines FDA report to justify her statements. Reckitt countered that this report is irrelevant as the company's affiliate in the Philippines does not sell Dettol there..Representing Reckitt, Lall strongly refuted claims made on the podcast, stating that Dettol is a licensed drug approved as an antiseptic for use on human skin. He argued that Dettol has been marketed as an antiseptic liquid since 1936 and falls under the definition of "drugs" as per Section 3(b)(i) of the Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 1940.He contended that to call Dettol a disinfectant to be used only for mopping floors is blatantly false and slanderous. He also pointed out that the Indian Pharmacopoeia defines an antiseptic as "an agent that inhibits or destroys microorganisms on living tissue including skin, oral cavities, and open wounds.".Lall contended that the social media content in question was driving traffic to Marwah's dermatology practice and generating viewership for the influencers involved. The podcast reportedly garnered over 236,000 views and 5,700 likes, while the Instagram Reel has received 2.4 million views."The reel damages me irreparably even if it’s up for an hour. The podcast can continue, just remove the part which speaks about Dettol. She is very very popular on Instagram. By the time it comes up for hearing, it will posted and shared. If she posts this on various fora, it will be difficult to control. Even the court order can’t stop. Why should they not appear today when I have given them 3 notices?" Lall contended..Lall further argued that Marwah claimed that betadine is used in various hospital instead of Dettol. He claimed that this amounts to the Marwah promoting Betadine over Dettol. .Justice Bannerjee, however, remarked that he was not prima facie satisfied with the argument on disparagement. "It’s an interpretation given by her, she is a qualified dermatologist," the judge said. He proceeded to adjourn the case till tomorrow. Justice Bannerjee also assured that he will pass an order one way or the other tomorrow. .Lall was briefed by Advocate Nancy Roy from Lall and Sethi along with Advocates Jawahar Lal and Meghna Kumar from J-Law.