Firm booked by Mumbai Police for illegally using Sachin Tendulkar’s pictures to advertise products

Mumbai Police registered a case against a firm for unethically using the pictures of India great Sachin Tendulkar for advertising products such as fat-burning spray and burner oil among others. According to the pertinent sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Information Technology (IT) Act, the workers associated with the firm have been charged on the grounds of cheating, forgery, and defamation.

Tendulkar’s personal assistant (PA), Ramesh Pardhe, lodged a complaint on the issue over the use of the cricketer’s pictures without authorization. In addition to this, the firm also launched a website named after the legendary cricketer so as to advertise the products with his pictures.

Pardhe stated that it was on May 5, that he first noticed the ads on Facebook featuring Tendulkar, as recorded in the statement to the police. Moreover, the firm also used an audio mimicking Tendulkar’s voice on Instagram ads, in order to make it legitimate for viewers to believe in the product.  

“Not only did the advertisement for the belly burner oil feature Tendulkar’s picture, but it also said it was ‘recommended by Sachin Tendulkar,’ he said. The link to the ad took me to the website of the company called Shyla Health. I also checked the Instagram account of the company,” Pardhe was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.

Upon researching further, Pardhe also found another website owned by the same firm which claimed to sell various products to users upon which they would receive a signed T-shirt from Tendulkar. In addition to this, the firm also created a ‘Sachin Health Affiliate Program’ without any actual links to the cricketer. 

“As Sachin is not associated in any way with the products, the company is not only misusing his brand but also cheating their own customers,” told Deputy Commissioner of Police (Cyber) Balsing Rajput.

Further investigations are on as the cyber police is yet to find the remaining members of the firm. Meanwhile, the cricketer has not let out any statement over his association with the products and wants the police to take charge of the matter.