Indian news agency sues Netflix

Archive footage owned by ANI was used in a show that landed in hot water over Hindu names being used for Muslim terrorists

Asian News International (ANI), one of the largest media outlets in India, has sued the US company Netflix and the producers of a controversial show depicting the 1999 hijacking of an Indian aircraft by terrorists, Reuters reported on Monday. 

ANI has filed a copyright infringement lawsuit, and is demanding that four episodes of the recently released show ‘IC 814 – The Kandahar Hijack’ be taken down. Sidhant Kumar, ANI’s lawyer, told Reuters that Netflix used the outlet’s archive footage and its trademark without permission. 

Notably, the show, which is based on the hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight 814 by the Pakistan-based terrorist group Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, triggered a national controversy earlier this month over its use of Hindu names for Muslim terrorists. According to government data, the real hijackers addressed each other as “Chief,” “Doctor,” “Burger,” “Bhola,” and “Shankar.” 

These were used by the Netflix series, despite the fact that the real names of the terrorists are now known – Ibrahim Athar, Shahid Akhtar Sayed, Sunny Ahmed Qazi, Mistri Zahoor Ibrahim, and Shakir. While Netflix issued a statement last week and updated the disclaimer to the series to include the real names and nicknames of the hijackers, the show continues to be a topic of head debates in the country. Last week, India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting summoned the content head of Netflix India, Monika Shergill, seeking an explanation for the controversy.

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“Since the series has come into such criticism, our trademark and brand name are being tarnished,” ANI’s lawyer claimed. 

According to the news portal LiveLaw, the High Court in Delhi heard the case on Monday and issued a notice to the producers of the show. The counsel appearing for one of the show’s producers said that the footage shown in the series was obtained through two firms and that over a million rupees (about $12,000) had been paid for it. The matter will be heard on Friday, according to the portal.

The development comes close on the heels of ANI’s legal tangle with another major US company, Wikipedia. The agency has accused the website of allowing “defamatory” edits which refer to the news agency as a “propaganda tool” for the government. Hearing the case last week on Thursday, the Delhi High Court verbally conveyed that it would block the website in India if it does not comply with the country’s laws.