Bollywood celebs Ranbir Kapoor and Farhan Akhtar have been accused of criminal breach of trust and forgery for endorsing a shopping portal which is allegedly cheating its customers.
Rajat Bansal, a lawyer from Lucknow, has registered an FIR against the actors under IPC sections 406 (punishment for criminal breach of trust) and 420 (forgery) on 19 September, according to the police, reported PTI.
Besides the celebrities, Bansal has also lodged the FIR against the directors of the online portal askmebazaar.com - Sanjiv Gupta, Anand Sonbhadra, Kiran Kumar Sriniwas Murti, Piyush Pankaj and marketing officer Puja Goyal, under the same two sections of the IPC.
Bansal, in his FIR, has alleged that on 23 August, he had ordered a 40-inch LED TV from the site and had paid Rs 29,999 through his debit card but did not receive the product within 10 days as promised by the shopping site.
He further alleged that with Farhan and Ranbir promoting the site, people were getting falsely lured to the shopping portal.
Other celebs who landed in trouble for endorsing products:
A few months go, an FIR was registered against actress Madhuri Dixit Nene, Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan and actress Preity Zinta for endorsing a popular instant noodle brand that came under the scanner for allegedly not complying with safety standards.
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan also received criticism for a print commercial by an Indian jewellery brand. The ad poster showed Aishwarya dressed like a queen while a dark-skinned coloured child held an umbrella over her head. Social activists claimed that the poster was racist and promoted child labour. The ad was quickly pulled out following the controversy.
Shah Rukh Khan's association with a skin-lightening product for men also invited a lot of flak. Even Yami Gautam received a lot of criticism for promoting a fairness cream brand. Both SRK and Yami, however, continue to endorse the respective brands.
Besides the Maggi ad, Big B found himself at the receiving end for endorsing a candy brand. The commercial featured Big B pelting stones at a mango tree, which, according to the Advertising Standard Council of India, could instigate children to imitate Big B's actions, leading to harmful consequences.
Ranveer Singh's condom ad, though appreciated by many, drew a lot of flak at the same time.
While Katrina Kaif's association with a hair removal cream brand didn't create any controversy in India, the actress has been criticised by Pakistanis, who feel there is a lot of 'skin show' and 'nudity' in the commercial.
Back in 2012, Govinda received a notice from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for promoting an ayurvedic oil that promised to cure pains and aches.
Also in the same year, a police case was filed against actress Genelia D'Souza for promoting a real estate firm that was accused of cheating.
