The first Indian athlete to be granted court-backed protection for his publicity rights and personality is the legendary opener Sunil Gavaskar. The Delhi High Court’s landmark verdict solidifies the legal recognition of an athlete’s identity as a protected personal asset, marking a significant turning point in Indian sports law.
The Delhi High Court ruled on December 23 that those who were allegedly abusing Gavaskar’s name, image, and voice had to take down any offensive material from social media and online retailers within 72 hours. Additionally, the court ordered that the platforms themselves remove the content if the accused did not comply.
Gavaskar had petitioned the court, claiming that his credibility as a senior cricket analyst could be harmed by the unapproved sale of items, deceptive social media posts, and incorrect attribution of words. Senior Advocate Gopal Jain represented Gavaskar in the case, which was heard by Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora after being briefed by Krida Legal. The matter’s next hearing is set for May 22, 2026.
Being one of the first court decisions in India to specifically protect a sportsperson’s personality and publicity rights, the decision is very significant. The court acknowledged the existence of offensive, deceptive, and profit-driven content on the internet. The court noted that anything that appears to violate someone’s personality rights cannot be permitted, even if it acknowledged the importance of comedy and satire on social media.
It is important to remember that personality rights are the legal rights of individuals to manage, safeguard, and profit from the use of their name, image, voice, and identity. According to Gavaskar’s petition, unmanaged digital misuse can lead to reputational injury and commercial exploitation, particularly through social media virality, AI-generated content, and unapproved merchandising.
Gavaskar is listed with other Indian celebrities who have requested comparable protection in the decree.
Court-backed protections against the misuse of their personas have been granted to movie stars including Salman Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Jackie Shroff, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Amitabh Bachchan, and Anil Kapoor.
Sportsmen around the world have long acknowledged the monetary worth of personality rights. Through trademarks and licensing agreements, famous people like Lionel Messi, LeBron James, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Michael Jordan have actively secured their names and likenesses.
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