In a significant legal development, the Hyderabad city civil courts have removed a key obstacle for streaming giant Netflix. The XXV additional chief judge on Tuesday vacated a temporary order that had previously blocked the platform from streaming an episode about Byrraju Ramalinga Raju, the founder of the infamous Satyam Computer Services.
The Episode Finally Sees the Light of Day
Following the court's decision, the contentious episode was released on Wednesday. It forms a part of Netflix's investigative docuseries titled 'Bad Boy Billionaires: India'. Sources within the city civil court officially confirmed this development to the media.
Netflix promptly announced the release on its social media channels. The platform stated, "After the success of IT company Satyam Computer Services, Ramalinga Raju's math didn't seem to be adding up. Watch the fourth episode of 'Bad Boy Billionaires: India', out now, only on Netflix."
A Long Legal Battle Over Privacy and Defamation
The legal journey for this episode has been protracted. The dispute began back in 2020 when Netflix first announced the series, which also features episodes on Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, and Subrata Roy. Ramalinga Raju approached the court, arguing that the episode based on his life and the Satyam scandal would constitute an unlawful invasion of his privacy. He further contended it would cause serious reputational damage, amounting to defamation.
Accepting his plea initially, the civil court had issued an order restraining Netflix from airing the Raju episode. In response, Netflix challenged this decision in the Telangana High Court.
The Path to the Final Verdict
The Telangana High Court, however, declined to intervene directly in the lower court's order. Instead, it directed Netflix to file an application before the trial court itself, seeking the vacation of the interim stay. The High Court also instructed the city civil court to decide on Netflix's plea expeditiously and disposed of the matter.
Acting on these directions, the Hyderabad city civil court heard detailed arguments from both legal teams representing Raju and Netflix. After consideration, the court ruled in favour of Netflix, allowing its plea and thereby lifting the ban on the episode.
It is important to note that while the interim applications have been disposed of, the main civil suit filed by Raju remains pending and is yet to be adjudicated by the civil court.
