The Delhi High Court recently emphasized the need for courts to be more stringent and cautious when dealing with cases of trademark or copyright infringement, especially in the pharmaceutical sector. In the case of Mankind Pharma Limited v. Sanshiv Health Tech Private Limited & Anr., Justice Saurabh Banerjee stated that courts must take proactive steps to curb trademark violations in pharmaceutical products to safeguard public interest.
The court made these remarks while granting an interim injunction to prevent Sanshiv Health Tech from marketing its nutritional supplement, ‘Calika-P,’ after Mankind Pharma filed a plea. Mankind Pharma argued that Sanshiv Health’s product was deceptively similar to its own ‘Caldikind’ and ‘Caldikind-P’ supplements, violating its trademark rights.
Justice Banerjee stressed that confusion among the public is likely if competing products with similar trademarks and trade dress are allowed to coexist. The court pointed out that Sanshiv Health’s ‘Calika-P’ closely resembled Mankind’s product in terms of trade dress, label, artwork, and trademark, creating a high risk of public confusion.
The court further noted that Sanshiv Health appeared to be capitalizing on the goodwill and reputation of Mankind Pharma by adopting similar branding. The court concluded that this was a deliberate attempt to mislead consumers into believing that Sanshiv Health’s products were associated with Mankind Pharma.
Given the similarities between the products and the public health implications, the court granted Mankind Pharma’s request for an interim injunction. Sanshiv Health has been prohibited from selling or advertising its ‘Calika-P’ product, or any other product resembling ‘Caldikind,’ until the next hearing.
The case is scheduled for further proceedings, including completion of pleadings, on December 18, 2024. The next court hearing is set for January 27, 2025.
Senior Advocate Rajiv Nayar, along with advocates Ankur Sangal, Ankit Arvind, Shashwat Rakshit, and Nidhi Pathak, represented Mankind Pharma. No representation appeared for Sanshiv Health.
