BCCI lands in legal trouble for naming IPL robot dog 'Champak'

The Delhi High Court has issued a notice to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in response to a copyright infringement lawsuit filed by the publishers of Champak, a well-known children’s magazine. Notably, the BCCI used the name "Champak" for a robotic dog introduced during the IPL 2025 season.

The robotic dog has grabbed attention in IPL 2025. This robot can walk, run, jump, and even stand on its hind legs. It was first seen during the Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Capitals match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in early April. The dog was developed by international broadcast tech firms wTVision and Omnicam.

BCCI Faces Legal Action Over Use of 'Champak' Name for IPL Robotic Dog

Delhi Press Patra Prakashan Pvt Ltd, the publisher of the long-running children’s magazine Champak since 1968, has taken legal action against the BCCI. The publisher stated that the cricket board used the magazine’s registered trademark without permission for a product that serves commercial purposes.

SHORTS

View More

Your daily dose of cricket!

Loading...

In its complaint to the Delhi High Court, the company argued that such unauthorized use not only infringes on its trademark rights but also damages the magazine’s reputation. They requested an interim order to prevent the BCCI from continuing to refer to the robot by the same name.

“This AI tool [robotic dog] has been named as Champak. The IPL has been going on. The product was introduced earlier but it was named later on April 23 purportedly based on fan voting,” advocate Amit Gupta, representing Delhi Press, submitted before the court.

My Magazine Is Known for Animal Characters - Amit Gupta

The court dismissed the magazine publisher’s claim over the use of the name ‘Chiku’, adding that it has long been associated with Virat Kohli and that no previous legal action had been taken over it. The judge pointed out that the publisher was aware of the name’s usage but had never objected until now.

“When did you come to know about that? It is a fact you knew about that but you have not initiated against that,” the judge said.

“My magazine is known for animal characters. Let us take the product to be distinct but the very use is causing detriment. It is causing dilution,” Gupta said in his response.

“There is nothing on record that there is something which is causing some dilution and detriment,” the court said.

Amit Gupta Claims BCCI's Use of 'Champak' Is Commercial Exploitation

Gupta stated that the use of the name Champak for the robotic dog constituted commercial exploitation, given that the league is a profit-driven enterprise.

The court also revisited the issue of the name Chiku, which is commonly associated with Virat. The judge said the publisher could potentially seek royalties from Kohli for using the name. However, Gupta clarified that since Kohli hasn’t used Chiku to market or sell a product, there’s no case of commercial misuse.

“IPL is a commercial venture,” Gupta added.

“In case he were to launch a product Chiku, that would be a commercial exploitation,” the counsel said.

Also read: Pakistan vs Bangladesh schedule 2025 for T20 series unveiled