D. BASKARAN Vs. DEPUTY REGISTRAR OF TRADE MARKS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The prayer in the writ petition is to direct the first respondent, the appropriate authority to receive the petitioner's renewal application dtd. 15/12/2015 for renewing the Trade Mark "TAJMAHAL" Indian Pappad registered under No. 1077334 in Class 30 and renew the same in accordance with due process of law.

(2.) The petitioner firm is engaged in the business of manufacturing, marketing and exporting pappads and had adopted the trade mark 'TAJMAHAL' for their products. The said trade mark has been used by them continuously and extensively from 1/4/1970 and had attained a high reputation and turnover. The petitioner's trade mark TAJMAHAL was advertised in the Trade Mark Journal dtd. 16/8/1982. However, it was not renewed and the same lapsed. Later, after the petitioner took over the firm from his mother in 1985 and became the sole proprietor of the firm, he changed the design of the label and applied for registration of the changed trade mark TAJMAHAL Indian Pappad on 1/2/2002 by Application No. 1077334 in class 30 for the revised label TAJMAHAL claiming to be using the same from 1/4/1985. The same was accepted and published in the Trade Mark Journal on 15/3/2006 and the registration certificate was issued on 19/2/2007.

(3.) The petitioner found out the infringement of goods of Pappad sold in Kuwait identical to his Trade Mark "TAJMAHAL" during October 2014, and therefore, sent a notice on 10/10/2014 to the infringer through his attorney. Only while receiving the reply notice from the infringer, the petitioner learnt that the Register No. 1077334 was not renewed within time. The said Trade Mark Registration Certificate dtd. 1/2/2002 was issued only on 19/2/2007 and he was told that the Trade Mark has to be renewed after 10 years. However, the website of the Trade Mark Registry www.ipindia.nic.in reflected the status of the Trade Mark TAJMAHAL Indian Pappad as "registered", and only on verification, it was learnt that the Trade Mark was not renewed and the petitioner was asked to submit a copy of the renewal intimation/registration certificate/extract of the journal, wherein, the application was advertised with registration charges, etc.