Delhi HC upholds single judge’s order in Domex vs Harpic advertisement case

The bench termed Domex's advertisements to be untruthful

A division bench of the Delhi High Court has upheld a single judge’s order restraining HUL from publishing advertisements (one print ad and three youtube ads) for their toilet cleaner Domex. The ads were found to be disparaging towards Harpic; a toilet cleaner by Reckitt Benckiser.

A single judge order in 2021 had held the advertisements to be disparaging in nature.  The order had restrained HUL from publishing or broadcasting four of the impugned advertisements.

In response, HUL’s case was that the advertisement and the videos truthfully depicted that the effect of its product lasts longer than Reckitt’s product. On the other, Reckitt disputed the claims and contended that the advertisement and videos were misleading and disparaging.

Now, the division bench of the HC has upheld the 2021 decisions and said that while an advertiser can indulge in “puffery and hyperbole to reflect its product in a good light”, they cannot claim that the competitor’s product is “bad, substandard or its use would be detrimental to the interest or well-being of the customers”.

The bench further termed the advertisements to be ‘untruthful’. 

“In the aforesaid view, we find no infirmity with the decision of the learned Single Judge in interdicting HUL from publishing the impugned advertisement on the ground that it, prima facie, denigrates and disparages Reckitt’s product Harpic,” the bench stated.

A division bench of Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice Amit Mahajan said that while comparative advertising is permissible, it cannot disparage the products of the competitors.

In 2021, HUL had launched an advertising campaign for Domex directly comparing itself to Harpic - a Reckitt Benckiser product. The ad which has now been taken down from all platforms showed a woman picking up a Harpic bottle. Her son then asks her if Harpic can  kill the odour in toilets, at this moment, another woman appears and informs the mother that Domex leverages fresh guard technology to combat toilet odour which Harpic can’t.