ROTELA AUTO COMPONENTS P LIMITED Vs. JASPAL SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Plaintiffs filed a suit for perpetual injunction, inter alia, praying for injunction against infringement of design, passing off and rendition of accounts It is the case of the applicants-plaintiffs that plaintiff no.1 is a company registered in India and plaintiff no.2 is a Corporation existing under the laws of Republic of China and having its registered office at Taiwan. The applicants are the sole distributor and constituted attorney in India for the Top Open Locks and Pin locks manufactured by plaintiff no.2.

(2.) Mr.Arum BhardwaJ, learned counsel appearing for the applicants-plaintiffs, haa contended that plaintiffs are manufacturing unique and distinctive locks since the period of its registration under the provisions of Designs Act, 2000. Some of the salient features of the plaintiffs Top Open Locks are as under

(3.) It was contended before me that by virtue of extensive user the plaintiff has acquired exclusive right- to the adoption and use of distinctive designs. It was contended by Mr.BhardwaJ that defendants have adopted the Identical features and copied the same deceptively. It' was contended by the learned counsel for the plaintiffs that adoption and application of the identical or deceptively similar designs by defendants amounts to an act of piracy within the meaning of Section 22 of the Designs Act, 2000 and the defendants cannot have any Justification to adopt the plaintiffs' distinctive designs and cannot be allowed to earn profits in Illegal manner. It was also contended that defendants were guilty of passing off their goods by giving an Impression that they are the seller of the genuine goods manufactured by the plaintiffs. On 10th July, 2001 this Court granted an ex parte interim injunction In favour of the plaintiffs-applicants. Subsequently on 25th July, 2001 an application for vacation of the stay was filed by the defendants. In sum and substance the case of the applicants is that the plaintiff's design of the locks, its shape, configuration, pattern and composition of lines is a design which has been registered by the Controller of design, who has granted a certificate of registration in terms of Section 9 of the Designs Act.