Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Mobile Company in Legal Row Over Endorsement

Delhi High Court on Thursday asked the manufacturer of Maxx Mobile to refrain from selling any product which contained or showed the endorsement of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the captain of the Indian national cricket team.

Justice S Muralidhar said the November 17, 2014 interim order restraining Maxx from using Dhoni's name would remain in force till an Arbitral Tribunal was set up to resolve the dispute between them.

The order was passed after Dhoni's counsel Gaurav Mitra and Pratik Malik informed the court that the company was still selling products using the cricketer's name, which clearly violated its previous order and amounted to contempt.

To this, the judge asked the counsel for the cricketer to move an appropriate application in that regard.

"In violation of November 17, 2014 order the petitioners (Dhoni and Rhiti Sports) can take an appropriate action. They can even file a contempt case against the manufacturer," the court said, while disposing of the petition.

The court was hearing a plea filed by Dhoni and Rhiti Sports who have alleged that Maxx Mobilink Private Ltd has not paid dues of over Rs 10 crore which was agreed upon for using the cricketer's name on their products.

Dhoni has also claimed that the endorsement agreement between him and the company has expired in December 2012 but Maxx was still using his name to sell its products and also not paying the dues.

The High Court in November last year had said that the respondent should refrain from selling any products "which use or claim to have been endorsed by Dhoni or in any other manner suggest that the cricketer is associated with the respondent (Maxx)."

Later in the day, Dhoni's counsel in a statement said, "We shall now very soon file an appropriate application before the court to take cognizance of such contemptuous acts of the respondent company and shall seek sternest possible punishment for them."