New Delhi [India], January 21 (ANI): A Delhi court has issued an injunction against GRM Food Craft Private Limited, restraining the company from using the trademark “10X Shakti” on the packaging of its wheat flour after it was found to be using the trademark “Shakti 10X” without legal authorization.
In a recent order, Delhi’s Rohini Court stated, “A prima facie case has been made out in favor of the plaintiff (Kumar Food Industries Ltd), and the balance of convenience also lies in its favor. It can also be anticipated that the plaintiff would suffer irreparable loss in terms of goodwill and finances if an ex-parte interim injunction is not granted.”
The court of District Judge (Commercial) Umed Singh Grewal added that, to protect the plaintiff from financial and reputational loss and to prevent the public from purchasing goods that may be of substandard quality, the application under Order 39, Rules 1 & 2 of the CPC was granted.
The defendant and its representatives are restrained, until the next date, from using the trademark “10X Shakti” or its variants on wheat flour packaging, the court stated.
The court observed that the documents submitted clearly indicate that the plaintiff’s predecessor was the original owner of the “Shakti Bhog” trademark and its variants, which were assigned to the plaintiff in 2017. However, the defendant is using the trademark “10X Shakti Bhog,” with the “10X” appearing in a small font above the word “Shakti,” which is in larger capital letters, drawing significant attention. Both parties operate in the same industry, and the prominent use of the word “Shakti” on the defendant’s packaging could confuse unsuspecting customers into believing the goods are manufactured by the plaintiff.
According to the suit filed by Kumar Food Industries Limited, Kewal Krishan Kumar is the original adopter of the trademark “Shakti Bhog” and began using it, along with its variants, on his products in 1975. He incorporated a company on March 30, 1991.
Prior to this, he registered the word mark “Shakti Bhog,” the device mark, and its other variants, including “Maha Shakti Bhog,” in classes 29, 30, 31, 32, and 42 under the provisions of the Trade and Merchandise Act, 1958, and the Trade Marks Act, 1999, since 1975.
On October 1, 1996, Kewal Krishan Kumar executed an irrevocable license deed in favor of the plaintiff, granting the use of the trademark “Shakti Bhog” for a period of ten years. On April 3, 2006, another license deed was executed, further extending the irrevocable license for an additional 30 years.
During the arguments, the plaintiff’s counsel stated that the plaintiff has been the continuous proprietor of the “Shakti Bhog” trademark and its variants for the past 32 years as a licensee, and since January 1, 2018, as the owner, by virtue of an assignment deed dated December 30, 2017. The counsel argued that the plaintiff is entitled to the benefits of the trademark registration as per the deed of assignment. The dispute raised before the NCLT by the IRP, at the behest of the plaintiff’s competitors, does not grant any third party the right to use or infringe upon the trademark and pass off their goods as those of the plaintiff.
The plaintiff’s counsel further highlighted that a recent market survey revealed that the defendant, M/S GRM Food Craft Pvt Ltd, was selling wheat flour under the “10X Shakti” trademark. Investigations showed that the defendant had been using the “10X” trademark for the last 2-3 years and only started using “10X Shakti” on wheat flour, while marketing other food products under the “10X” mark. The defendant had also applied in 2022 for the registration of “10X Shakti,” but the application was rejected by the Trademark Registrar on March 9, 2024. The counsel concluded by requesting that the defendant be restrained from using the “10X Shakti” trademark on wheat flour packaging. (ANI)
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