In a trademark infringement case relating to one of its products, Century Textiles and Industries has gone to court against e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal, its founders Rohit Bansal and Kunal Bahl and Modicare, the K K Modi Group company in the Bombay High Court. Despite several notices to the e-commerce company, the BK Birla Group company has alleged that Modicare was selling ‘dhoti’, a garment worn by Hindu men, under the brand name of ‘Paramsukh’ which is a registered trademark of the Birla’s since 1942. The ‘dhoti’ is being sold under the same name on Snapdeal.com, the textile major alleged. The case was filed on October 4 and was listed for October 14, Court filings show.
In its petition, the Mumbai-based company said the trademark Paramsukh is widely recognised and that the impugned mark as sought to be used by Modicare is deceptively similar to its registered trademark. This is likely to result in confusion, it remarked and also accused the K K Modi group company of passing off its products as that of Century Textiles.
As per intellectual property rights laws, passing off refers to making a false representation that is likely to induce consumers to believe that the goods or services are those of another. The plea also said that Snapdeal, operated by Jasper Infotech, was not ready and willing to provide the details of the seller trading on its website for which they receive commission.
