Chelsea and England captain John Terry has instructed solicitors to begin legal action against an Indian cigarette company, after hazy images of his face and upper body appeared to be printed on anti-smoking messages on their packets.
The image was designed by India’s Directorate of Visual Publicity (DAVP) and has since been approved by the Health Ministry for use on said cigarette packets.
Director-general for DAVP, K S Dhatwalia, acknowledged that the Chelsea skipper’s image had been used, but was bemused as to how it made it onto the packet.
He told the Indian Express: “We sent the creative to the health ministry and they then cleared and circulated it. But how Terry’s picture got to be used is not clear. I am trying to find out.”
An official from the health ministry, who refused to be named, was quick to distance themselves from any possible wrongdoing.
“We realised there was some confusion about one of the warnings and we immediately issued a clarification in November.
“The creative came to us from DAVP and we released it after due clearances. We are not responsible for pictures that may have been used by DAVP and cannot say whether it is the footballer.”
Keith Cousins of Elite Management, who manage Terry’s account, has warned the concerned parties of a legal action.
“We have reviewed this matter with our client and have today instructed solicitors to take appropriate action,” he said.