Delhi High Court Refuses Interim Relief To Vajiram & Ravi, Slams It For Delaying Main Trademark Suit

The Delhi High Court has refused to grant interim relief to civil services coaching institute Vajiram & Ravi in its trademark dispute with rival Vajirao & Reddy, while warning that the suit could face dismissal if the plaintiff fails to prosecute the trial.

A division bench of Justice V. Kameswar Rao and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora passed the judgment on Tuesday while dismissing Vajiram & Ravi's appeal against a September 2023 single judge order refusing an interim injunction.

The bench also directed Vajiram & Ravi to commence recording of evidence before the Local Commissioner in July 2026 and complete it within three months, failing which the single judge shall pass appropriate orders, including dismissal of the suit for non-prosecution.

“The state of affairs arising from the wilful inaction of the Appellant/plaintiff in leading evidence shows that parties file suits only to agitate the relief of an interim injunction and are not interested in the adjudication of their final claims. This conduct of the Appellant clearly reflects its lack of bona fides in prosecuting the suit proceedings.”

Vajiram & Ravi had sued Vajirao & Reddy alleging that the rival coaching institute's use of “VAJIRAO” and “VAJIRAO & REDDY” amounted to passing off and was deceptively similar to its own marks, including “VAJIRAM,” “VAJIRAM & RAVI,” and its earlier mark “VAJIRAM & RAO.”

The division bench agreed with the single judge's finding that the composite marks “VAJIRAM & RAVI” and “VAJIRAO & REDDY INSTITUTE”, when viewed as a whole, were distinct and unlikely to confuse civil services aspirants, whom it described as discerning consumers capable of distinguishing between the two institutes.

It also found that Vajiram & Ravi had not produced sales figures or advertisement expenditure to establish reputation and goodwill in “VAJIRAM” as a standalone mark, which was central to its challenge against Vajirao's standalone use of “VAJIRAO” in study material and domain names.

“The Appellant had not placed on record any sales figures or advertisement and promotion expenditure, which would establish its reputation and goodwill in the mark 'VAJIRAM' on a standalone basis.”

The bench also found Vajiram & Ravi's claim that it became aware of Vajirao & Reddy only in 2018 to be unconvincing at the prima facie stage, noting that both institutes had advertised in the same publications, including Civil Services Chronicle, since at least 2009.