Bombay High Court Orders Man To Do Cleaning & Mopping At Mumbai's JJ Hospital For Filing Bogus FIR Against Zee TV Show

The Bombay High Court recently ordered a man to do cleaning and mopping work at the government-run JJ hospital after noting that he had filed a bogus complaint against Zee TV for its new show titled 'Tum Se Tum Tak' which revolves around the love story of a nearly 46-year-old man and a 19-year-old girl.

A division bench of Justices Ravindra Ghuge and Gautam Ankhad was hearing a petition filed by Zee TV seeking to quash the First Information Report (FIR) lodged against the channel by one Mahendra Sanjay Sharma over its new serial. 

However, the bench expressed shock over the conduct of the complainant, who initially gave his name to the Cyber Cell as 'Sunil Sharma' and when he was produced before the judges last month, he stated his name to be 'Sunil Mahendra Sharma' however, his Aadhar Card, PAN Card and other documents showed his name as 'Mahendra Sanjay Sharma.'

The bench further recorded its dissatisfaction over the justification provided by the complainant that he had the right to lodge a complaint and since he was apprehending some kind of action against him as he was filing an FIR against a big media house, he changed the name in the complaint.

"The complaint itself was based merely on news items and opinions circulating on social media platforms. We are not satisfied with the explanation offered by the Complainant for lodging such a frivolous complaint under a false identity. The act appears to have been done with mala fide intent, possibly at the behest of a competitor. This aspect is left to be investigated by the police," the judges said, further adding, "In our view, the impersonation committed by the Complainant, both before the police authorities as well as before this Court, is a matter of grave concern. It constitutes a deliberate obstruction in the administration of justice."

The bench, therefore, ordered Sharma to perform community service at city's JJ hospital for 15 days.

"The Complainant is directed to perform community service at JJ Hospital for 15 working days, three hours daily (Monday to Friday). Such service shall include cleaning/wet cleaning/wet mopping of floors, common areas, or any other tasks assigned by the hospital administration," the bench ordered. 

The judges made it clear that if Sharma failed to perform the duties as ordered, he would then face contempt of court proceedings.

Appearance:

Senior Advocate Sanjog Parab along with Advocates Mohan Rao, Sulabha Rane, Sanjeev Ahuja and Sakshi Badkar appeared for Zee TV.

Advocate General Dr. Birendra Saraf along with Chief Public Prosecutor Hiten Venegaonkar and Additional Public Prosecutor SV Gavand represented the State

Senior Advocate Manoj Mohite and Advocate Ishad Shrivastava represented the Complainant. 

Case Title: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. vs Inspector of Police (Criminal Writ Petition 3607 of 2025)

Click Here To Read/Download Judgment