The Delhi High Court is examining whether “Pudin Hara” is a coined term belonging exclusively to Dabur in a trademark clash with Wellford Pharma. Dabur seeks cancellation of the rival mark, alleging copying and consumer confusion.
The Delhi High Court is examining an important question in a trademark dispute between Dabur India and Wellford Pharma — whether “Pudin Hara” is a unique Ayurvedic name created only by Dabur, or whether another pharma company can use it as a suffix and still claim trademark rights.
This issue lies at the centre of Dabur India’s plea seeking the cancellation of a rival trademark that includes the words Pudin Hara in it, in the case titled Dabur India vs Wellford Pharma.
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The Court heard Dabur’s plea on Tuesday, where the company argued that the mark “Welford Pudin Hara” should be cancelled because it attempts to ride on the reputation of Dabur’s well-known digestive remedy.
Justice Tejas Karia heard the arguments and has reserved the plea for interim orders.
Dabur told the Court that “Pudin Hara” is a coined expression created by the company and has been used by it since 1930. The counsel pointed out that Dabur had applied for trademark registration in 1979 and has held a strong market presence for decades.
The counsel submitted that,
“This particular mark has been solely associated with the petitioner (Dabur) and the petitioner alone,”
arguing that any similar trademark would easily mislead the public.
Dabur said it conducted a trademark search and found 29 registrations that use the term Pudin Hara. Out of these, 27 belong to Dabur itself. The company alleged that one of the two remaining marks — now under challenge — was a direct copy.
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According to Dabur, the respondent Wellford Pharma had “lifted the entirety” of Dabur’s mark and only added its own name as a prefix. Dabur alleged that this was an attempt to misuse the goodwill the original brand had built for nearly 90 years.
The company also argued that Wellford Pharma operates in the same field of medicinal and pharmaceutical products, making it impossible for the respondent to claim ignorance about Dabur’s long-established brand.
Since Pudin Hara is widely used by both adults and children, Dabur claimed that any confusion in medicinal products may not only dilute its hard-earned reputation but could also create risks for public health.
Dabur highlighted that Wellford Pharma applied for its trademark on a “proposed to be used” basis in 2022, and the registration was granted in 2023. Dabur said its own investigation did not show any actual usage of the rival mark in the market.
Along with the cancellation request, Dabur also asked the Court to suspend the effect of Wellford Pharma’s trademark registration and to restrain the rival company from transferring the mark to any third party while the dispute is ongoing.
The counsel for Dabur said,
“We are the prior registered owners,”
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and argued that marks that are identical and used in the same product category would automatically cause confusion among consumers.
Dabur insisted that, to maintain the purity of the trademark register, Wellford Pharma’s impugned registration should be completely removed.
Dabur was represented in the matter by a legal team from Ashwathh Legal.
Case Title:
Dabur India Vs Wellford Pharma
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