SANOFI INDIA LTD. Vs. UNIVERSAL NEUTRACEUTICALS PVT. LTD.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The plaintiffs have filed a suit for permanent injunction restraining infringement of trademark, copyright, passing off, unfair competition, dilution, tarnishment etc. against the defendant.

(2.) By way of this order I propose to decide the application being I.A. No. 11376/2014 under Order 39 Rule 1 and 2 read with Section 151 CPC filed by the plaintiffs seeking interim injunction against the defendant restraining from using the mark/name UNIVERSAL or any other mark similar thereto including the domain name or doing any other act amounting to infringement of plaintiff's registered trade mark and/or passing off its products and business as that of the plaintiffs. Case of the plaintiffs

(3.) Plaintiff No.1 was originally incorporated under the trading style of Hoechst Fedco Pharma Pvt. Ltd. in May, 1956. Plaintiff No.1's corporate name was changed to Sanofi India Ltd. with effect from May 11, 2012 consequent to a change of name of its parent company from 'Sanofi Aventis' to 'Sanofi' in May, 2011, in an effort to provide a common identity to the Sanofi Group globally. Plaintiff No.1 is a strong and cohesive entity in the field of pharmacy and medicine and is engaged in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of prescription based pharmaceutical products as well as over-thecounter (OTC) medication. It is also urged that plaintiff No.1 has a strong presence in seven major therapeutic areas viz. Diabetes, Oncology, Cardiovascular diseases, Thrombosis, Central Nervous System disorders and Internal Medicine.