WOCKHARDT LTD Vs. HETERO DRUGS LTD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This original application praying that this Hon'ble, Court be pleased to grant an order of Ad-interim injunction restraining the respondents, their directors, partners, servants, agents, dealers, distributors, retailers or assigns and each of them from in any way infringing the Patent No. 188847 of the Applicant or in any way using a process which infringes the said Patent No. 188347 of the applicant in the manufacture of any pharmaceutical and medicinal product/process or in any other manner whatsoever, pending disposal of the suit.

(2.) On 8.5.2000, the applicant applied for process patent for benoquinilozines on the ground that the applicant had invented the admixture composition. The process patent was granted to the applicant on 6.6.2003, of course, with effect from the date of application viz., 8.5.2000. The said process patent is renewed from time to time and is still valid and subsisting. The applicant also applied for product patent under Section 7, which was treated as mailbox application under Section 5(2) on 28/3/2002. The applicant also obtained the manufacturing licence for Nadifloxacin 1% cream on 27/4/2002 from the Drugs Controller General of India. The applicant started manufacturing the pharmaceutical preparation Nadifloxacin 1% cream. The terms of the transitory provision of Section 24-A, the applicant was granted EMR for a period of five years on 15/12/2003 upto 16/7/2008 and the grant of EMR was also informed to the Drugs Controller General. By the grant of EMR, the applicant started marketing Nadiflovacin 1% cream. The application for product patent is still pending.

(3.) In the meantime, the first respondent company applied for manufacturing licence adopting US patent 1981 and Japan patent 1983 to manufacture Nadifloxacin 1% cream under the trade mark NADIDERM. The Drugs Controller General granted manufacturing and marketing licence to the first respondent company for Nadifloxation 1% cream based on US patent by an order dated 14.9.2004. Pursuant to the order of the Drugs Controller General, the first respondent company started manufacturing and marketing Nadifloxacin 1% cream.