Karnataka High Court quashes case against Hindustan Unilever MD in biscuit contamination row

The Karnataka High Court has dismissed criminal proceedings initiated against Rohit Jawa, Managing Director and CEO of Hindustan Unilever, over alleged pesticide content in a biscuit sample. The decision, delivered by Justice J M Khazi on July 3, was recently made public.

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The case stemmed from a 2023 complaint filed by a food safety officer, who claimed a sample of Horlicks biscuits from a Bengaluru supermarket contained levels of Chlorpyrifos, a pesticide, that exceeded permissible limits. The complaint was registered under the Food Safety and Standards Act. Horlicks, a popular health food brand in India, is owned by Unilever.

In court, Jawa’s legal team maintained that the company itself had not been named as an accused and that the specific regulations cited did not apply to finished products like biscuits. They further argued that the CEO was not the direct manufacturer and therefore could not be held individually liable without the company being a party to the case.

The High Court concurred with this view, concluding that the case against Jawa could not proceed in the absence of the company being implicated. However, the court clarified that the complainant retains the right to file a fresh case, this time including Hindustan Unilever as an accused.

This judgment effectively closes the current proceedings but leaves open the possibility of renewed legal action involving the company.