Raman Negi, founding member and former frontman of The Local Train, has approached the Delhi High Court alleging unauthorised exploitation of his copyrighted works, denial of royalties and unlawful appropriation of trademarks linked to the band.
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NEW DELHI: Raman Negi, founding member and former lead vocalist of the acclaimed indie band The Local Train, has filed a commercial lawsuit before the Delhi High Court alleging copyright infringement, denial of royalty payments and unlawful control over trademarks linked to the band.
Negi has invoked protections under the Copyright Act, 1957, asserting his rights as an author, composer and performer. The suit also seeks protection of trademark rights, goodwill and proprietary interests associated with The Local Train brand.
The case was listed before Justice Tejas Karia, who conducted a brief hearing and scheduled the matter for further consideration in March 2026.
According to the plaint, Negi was the principal creative force behind The Local Train, having written and composed several songs even before the band formally came into existence. He contends that his role continued as the dominant songwriter and composer throughout his association with the band.
Negi claims exclusive authorship of the lyrics of 15 songs featured in the albums Aalas Ka Pedh (2015) and Vaaqif (2018). He also asserts sole composition rights over five tracks, including fan favourites “Choo Lo,” “Aaoge Tum Kabhi,” and “Kaisey Jiyun.”
In addition, the suit states that certain other songs were co-authored with another band member, with Negi retaining joint ownership. His creative contribution, he claims, was repeatedly acknowledged by the band through internal documentation, correspondence and public representations.
To avoid ambiguity, Negi has divided the disputed works into three categories:
- Solely owned literary and musical works, where he claims full copyright
- Jointly authored musical compositions, in which he asserts a 50% undivided share
- Sound recordings and audio-visual works, where he claims a minimum one-fourth ownership interest
Negi maintains that he never executed any written assignment, licence, or waiver transferring his copyright, performer’s rights, or moral rights, a legal requirement under Indian copyright law.
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The suit notes that Negi communicated his intent to exit the band in December 2021, subject to the settlement of accounts and formal disengagement. However, he alleges that these exit formalities were never completed despite repeated follow-ups.
During this period, the defendants allegedly continued to commercially exploit his works across streaming platforms while failing to provide royalty statements, revenue disclosures, or financial transparency. Negi further alleges that funds were diverted without proper accounting.
A proposed retirement deed, which purportedly sought to strip him of all current and future royalty and proprietary rights, was rejected by Negi.
One of the more serious allegations involves trademark ownership. Negi claims that in August 2022, while his exit remained unresolved, one of the defendants filed trademark applications related to The Local Train in their exclusive name.
According to Negi, these filings were made without his consent and were intended to wrongfully appropriate goodwill built largely on his creative output and public association with the band.
In December 2024, Negi issued a formal legal notice seeking detailed, work-wise and platform-wise revenue information. He alleges that the defendants refused to acknowledge his rights or share financial details.
Following this, Negi initiated pre-litigation mediation before the Delhi High Court Mediation and Conciliation Centre in March 2025. The mediation concluded without a settlement in September 2025, leading to the filing of the present commercial suit.
Negi has sought multiple remedies from the court, including:
- Judicial declarations confirming his ownership interests
- Permanent injunctions restraining unauthorised use of his works
- Full accounting and disclosure of revenues
- Payment of pending royalties
- Cancellation or restraint against disputed trademark registrations
- Damages, interest and legal costs
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