The Supreme Court of India restored contempt proceedings in the HERO trademark dispute between Hero Cycles Limited and Hero Ecotech Limited, setting aside the Patna High Court order that quashed action under Order XXXIX Rule 2A CPC.
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India has reinstated proceedings concerning a breach of an injunction in the ongoing “HERO” trademark dispute between Hero Cycles Limited and Hero Ecotech Limited.
A Bench comprising Justices B.V. Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan annulled the Patna High Court’s order that had quashed the trial court’s directive to commence contempt proceedings under Order XXXIX Rule 2A of the Code of Civil Procedure.
Factual Background
The dispute originated from a suit filed by Hero Cycles in 2014, which alleged a violation of a family settlement governing the use of the “HERO” trademark. An ad interim injunction was granted on September 22, 2014, prohibiting the use of the registered mark “HERO” concerning bicycles or bicycle components, and this injunction was confirmed on March 21, 2015.
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Although the High Court intervened to modify the injunction at one point, the Supreme Court reinstated it in 2016. Following this, Hero Cycles approached the trial court, alleging that the injunction had been disobeyed, and requested the initiation of proceedings under Order XXXIX Rule 2A CPC.
On September 7, 2019, the trial court determined that “a contempt proceeding be initiated against the Defendants,” directed the parties to present evidence, and ordered a separate record to be opened for the contempt trial.
However, by a judgment on September 3, 2025, the Patna High Court quashed the trial court’s order, finding that the proper procedure under Order XXXIX Rule 2A CPC had not been followed and that the contempt proceedings were initiated prematurely. This prompted Hero Cycles to appeal to the Supreme Court.
Issues
- Did the trial court err in its handling of proceedings under Order XXXIX Rule 2A CPC?
- Was the High Court justified in quashing the trial court’s order entirely?
- Should the application alleging breach of injunction be restored for adjudication?
Contentions of the Parties
Hero Cycles argued that its application under Order XXXIX Rule 2A CPC required a merits-based adjudication and contended that the High Court was wrong to quash the proceedings without allowing for a proper inquiry. In response, Hero Ecotech supported the High Court’s reasoning, claiming that the trial court had not adhered to procedural requirements and had prematurely initiated the contempt proceedings.
Reasoning and Analysis
The Supreme Court noted that the trial court was obligated to adjudicate the application under Order XXXIX Rule 2A CPC in accordance with the law, clarifying that both parties should be given a reasonable opportunity to present evidence if an inquiry into an alleged breach of injunction was sought.
The Bench pointed out that the High Court’s intervention effectively terminated the entire proceedings instead of correcting any procedural issues. Simultaneously, it recognized that the trial court’s approach needed to be reconsidered.
Consequently, the Supreme Court set aside both the High Court’s order from September 3, 2025, and the trial court’s order from September 7, 2019, restoring the application under Order XXXIX Rule 2A CPC to the trial court for fresh adjudication in accordance with the law.
The Supreme Court has restored the application under Order XXXIX Rule 2A CPC to the trial court for a fresh review, directing that the proceedings regarding the alleged breach of injunction be adjudicated while providing both parties with a reasonable opportunity.
The petitioner was represented by Senior Advocates Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Shyam Divan, Manish Vashisht, alongside Avishkar Singhvi, Durga Das Bhatla, Ashutosh Nagar, AOR Pushpindu Singh Sodhi, Priyansha Sharma, Aman Sharma, Uditanshu Singh, Navtej Singh, Nidhi Jain, Subhang Shankar Gogoi, Vedansh Vashisht, Anshika, and Saloni Bhatt, Advocates.