Patanjali directed to deposit Rs 50 lakh for violating a Bombay High Court order related to trademark infringement. In August 2023, the high court issued an interim order barring Patanjali from selling or advertising its camphor products.
Mumbai: The Bombay High Court instructed Patanjali Ayurved to deposit Rs 50 lakh due to an alleged breach of the court’s interim order, which prohibited the company from selling its camphor products.
This directive stems from a trademark infringement case initiated by Mangalam Organics Ltd. In August 2023, the HC issued an interim order preventing Patanjali Ayurved Ltd from marketing its camphor products.
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On July 8, Justice R I Chagla observed that Patanjali, in a June affidavit, acknowledged violating the previous order that imposed an injunction on selling the disputed camphor products.
Justice Chagla stated in the order,
“Such persistent breach of the injunction order dated 30th August 2023 by defendant no. 1 (Patanjali) cannot be tolerated by this court.” The order was made public on Wednesday.
The bench stated that it would be appropriate to require Patanjali to deposit Rs 50 lakh before issuing a contempt or breach order regarding the injunction.
The HC scheduled the next hearing for July 19.
In August 2023, the court’s interim order prohibited Patanjali from selling or advertising their camphor products. Mangalam Organics filed a lawsuit against Patanjali Ayurved, accusing them of copyright infringement related to their camphor products. Subsequently, Mangalam Organics filed an application claiming that Patanjali breached the interim order by continuing to sell the camphor products.
The HC acknowledged a June 2024 affidavit from Patanjali director Rajneesh Mishra, who offered an unconditional apology and pledged to comply with the court’s orders. In the affidavit, Mishra admitted that since the injunction order, there has been a cumulative supply of the disputed camphor product totalling Rs 49,57,861.
Justice Chagla remarked,
“Such persistent breach of the injunction order dated 30th August 2023 by defendant no. 1 (Patanjali) cannot be tolerated by this court.”
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Mangalam Organics disputed the assertion, stating that Patanjali continued to sell the products beyond June 24. Additionally, they highlighted that camphor products were still available on Patanjali’s website as of July 8.
Managalam Organics represented by Advocates Hiren Kamod, Anees Patel, Usha Chandrasekhar, and Avisha Mehta, under the guidance of Advocate Suvarna Joshi.
Patanjalai Ayurved represented by Senior Advocate Zal Andhyarujina and Advocate Serena Jethmalani, with support from Advocates Archit Virmani, Atul Gupta, Anshul Kochar, and R Kumar.
Read Order: [Mangalam Organics Ltd v. Patanjali Ayurved Ltd and Ors]
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