NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court on Monday declined to immediately intervene in an order barring PepsiCo from manufacturing beverages with the “energy drink” label, asking the single-judge bench to record specific reasons for the restriction within a week.A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Justice Sanjay Sharma was hearing PepsiCo’s appeal against an October 6 order of the single-judge bench. The division bench noted that the order did not specify the reasons for denying the company permission to continue manufacturing products under the descriptor.PepsiCo’s senior counsel submitted that while the single judge had protected the company from coercive action over the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India’s (FSSAI) directive to drop the “energy drink” descriptor from its beverages and allowed it to sell existing stock, it had refused permission to manufacture further batches of “Sting Energy” and “Adrenaline Rush” with the label.The counsel also submitted that similar relief had been granted to another beverage in a separate case.The division bench said it was not inclined to examine the merits of the matter at this stage, particularly as PepsiCo’s plea for confirmation of interim relief was still pending before the single-judge bench.“What is in operation is an ad-interim relief in the matter,” the court said, as it remanded the matter to the single-judge bench for the recording of reasons.“We are prima facie of the view that the single judge has not recorded any specific reasons for not permitting the petitioner in the matter of manufacturing with the label ‘energy drink’, which otherwise was permissible in (the Red Bull case),” it stated.“We deem it appropriate to relegate the matter to the single judge with a direction that for observations in paragraph 13 of the order dated 6.10.2026, let there be reasons recorded so as to enable this court to deal with the issue. Let the aforesaid exercise be done by the single judge in one week from today,” the bench ordered.The counsel appearing for the FSSAI opposed the appeal, arguing that it was not maintainable.On October 6, the single-judge bench had restrained coercive action against PepsiCo after the FSSAI directed the company to remove the “energy drink” descriptor from its beverages. While allowing PepsiCo to sell its existing stock carrying the label, the court had barred it from manufacturing any more products bearing the descriptor.PepsiCo had approached the single-judge bench challenging the FSSAI’s orders directing it to drop the “energy drink” label. The food safety regulator had also directed food safety officers across the country to seize the products.(With Agency Inputs)
