Asian News International has filed a defamation suit in the Delhi High Court against YouTuber Mohak Mangal for posting an allegedly defamatory video accusing the news agency of extortion and blackmail, Bar and Bench reported on Wednesday.

The suit also listed comedian Kunal Kamra and AltNews co-founder Mohammed Zubair, among others, as defendants for sharing Mangal’s video on social media, Live Law reported.

The court is expected to hear the matter on Thursday, according to Bar and Bench.

In his video titled “Dear ANI” uploaded on May 25, Mangal had accused ANI of extortion and blackmail after the news agency initiated copyright strikes against his YouTube channel for using its footage in his material.

A copyright strike on YouTube takes place when the copyright owner claims that a video has used their content without permission. YouTube reviews the claim and, if valid, stops the creator from monetising it or removes the video. It also gives the uploader of the video a strike. Receiving three strikes can lead to a channel’s termination.

Mangal contended in his video on Sunday that he had used the footage under the “fair use” principle.

Fair use is a legal doctrine that is generally understood to allow limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the owner for purposes such as critiques, reviews or teaching.

Mangal’s video had 5.5 million views as of Wednesday.

In its suit, ANI claimed that the video was an attempt to “discredit and insult” the news agency and the services it provides under its registered trademarks, Bar and Bench reported.

Mangal had admitted to using ANI’s original copyrighted videos to earn revenue, the news agency was quoted as having claimed in its suit, adding that the YouTuber had published the video filled with defamatory and damaging statements despite this.

The suit also alleged that Kamra, Zubair and others who had shared Mangal’s video on their social media accounts had “independently published further false, baseless and malicious statements targeting the plaintiff and its founders”.

ANI alleged that the statements were “devoid of any factual or legal foundation” and were intended to “malign” the reputation of the news agency in the eyes of the public.

The suit sought a permanent and mandatory injunction against Mangal, including directions to take down the video, stop using ANI’s trademarks and refrain from publishing or circulating further “false, misleading or defamatory” content against the news agency, Bar and Bench reported.

It also sought similar restraining orders against Kamra, Zubair and others, preventing them from making or sharing defamatory and false statements about ANI.