Delhi HC to consider suit filed by MS Dhoni’s ex-business partners on Jan 29

The ex-business partners have approached the high court seeking a permanent injunction and damages against Dhoni, several social media platforms and media houses

The Delhi high court will on January 29 consider a suit filed by cricketer MS Dhoni’s ex-business partner Mihir Diwakar and his wife Soumya Das seeking to restrain the cricketer from making defamatory allegations against the couple of duping him of ₹15 crore by breaching the contract of establishing cricket academies.

In October last year, Dhoni had also filed a criminal case against the duo under Sections 406 and 420 of the IPC. (PTI file photo)

A bench of justice Prathiba Singh on Thursday directed the duo and court’s registry to give an intimation to the cricketer about the suit.

“Before going into the allegations in the complaint & the maintainability of the suit for injunction, it is deemed appropriate to direct intimation to defendant No 1 (MS Dhoni) of the filing of the present suit. Let the registry issue an email to defendant No 1,” the judge said in the order.

The suit arises out of the agreement entered between the company, Aarka Sports Management, a company owned by the duo, and the cricketer in 2017, wherein Dhoni was to receive the full franchise fee and profits were to be shared on a 70:30 basis between the cricketer and the ex-partners.

According to the cricketer, he had in August 2021, however revoked the agreement but the former partners continued setting up academies in eight to 10 locations without informing him and did not make payments to him.

In October last year, Dhoni had also filed a criminal case against the duo under Sections 406 and 420 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in Ranchi court.

The duo in the suit had contended that the allegations were made without any basis and evidence with the sole intention to tarnish and malign their reputation and that the same are wild, false, baseless, vindictive and unfounded.

They have also sought to direct X (formerly known as Twitter), Google, YouTube, Facebook and other news platforms to take down the defamatory posts and articles against them.

On Thursday, Diwakar, appearing through advocate Rishi Awsthi submitted that Dhoni’s lawyer, Dayanand Sharma, before any view could be taken by the trial court in the complaint, conducted a press conference on January 6, 2024, wherein he levelled allegations against the duo, which were widely reported and tarnished their image.

He further submitted that though the letter of authorisation was revoked via email dated August 15, 2021, the same was sent by an unknown third party with no authorisation to revoke the letter.