CHANDIGARH: A local court in Chandigarh issued notice to soft drink major Coca Cola, 15 years after it was accused of not keeping its word on arranging a date with film star Hrithik Roshan for a young woman from Panchkula. The woman had won a contest organized by the cola maker in 2000 with the first prize being a romantic dinner with Hrithik. When the date did not materialize, she went to court wanting Rs 2.5 crore in damages.

Civil judge (senior division), K K Jain of Chandigarh district court, issued the notice while allowing a 12-year-old application by Shikha Monga on the maintainability of her suit. With these orders, she need not pay Rs 2.43 lakh as court fee for the suit.

"It is duly proved on record that applicant is not possessed of sufficient means to pay the court fee and she is indigent and as a squeal thereto. The application is allowed to pursue with this suit being from a pauper/indigent person," observed the court in its order. Coca Cola has been asked to file a reply by August 18.

According to Sikha, 34, Coca Cola Limited had floated a promotional program in 2000. According to the scheme, prizes were announced at the back of the crown of the cola bottles.

Being a teenager and a student of Government College for Girls, Chandigarh, then, Shikha says in her suit that she spent her pocket money on purchasing Coca Cola bottles and was overjoyed when she won the first prize on May 22, 2000.

She rushed to Coca Cola's marketing office in Chandigarh's Industrial Area where the manager offered her Rs 5 lakh for the crown saying that this prize was one in a billion. She, however, was not interested in the money and wanted to meet the film star as early as possible. She made several requests and sent various letters to the company to keep their promise and fix her meeting with Hrithik.

On the company's failure to arrange the meeting, she filed a suit for damages before the district court in June 2003 claiming damages for causing her insult in society. "Everybody in college, friends and relatives used to ask me about my meeting and dinner with Hrithik. I lost my reputation and was labelled as a liar in the society and have no alternative but to file the suit for damages," Sikha has submitted in her suit.

