The Madras High Court has granted an ad interim ex parte injunction restraining a Karnataka-based establishment from using the mark "TVS Bar and Restaurant" in a trademark infringement and passing off suit filed by TVS Holdings Limited and TVS Motor Company Limited.
Justice K. Kumaresh Babu passed the order on July 10.
Holding that the applicants had established their registered rights over the "TVS" trademark, the court observed:
"The applicants had been benefitted with the registration of a Trademark of the word 'TVS', which is used for various goods and services including 'Two wheelers, three wheelers, motor oil, additives to motor fuel, industrial oil, printed materials and services relating thereto'. The defendant had infringed the said trademark, which is evidenced from the name of the respondent's/defendant's establishment namely, 'TVS Bar and Restaurant' which is visually and phonetically deceptively similar to that of the applicants/plaintiffs."
TVS Holdings and TVS Motor approached the high court seeking interim injunctions against TVS Bar and Restaurant, an establishment in Gandasi, Hassan district of Karnataka.
They submitted that they are the registered proprietors of the "TVS" trademark. According to them, the mark is registered for various goods and services, including two-wheelers, three-wheelers, motor oil, additives to motor fuel, industrial oil and printed materials.
Finding that interim relief was warranted, the court held, "In such view of the matter, there shall be an order of injunction as prayed for."
The court granted ad interim injunctions in terms of the prayers in all three applications.
It restrained the establishment from using the "TVS" trademark and the applicants' artistic work in relation to its services. The court issued notice to the establishment, returnable in four weeks, and listed the matter after four weeks
For Applicants: Senior Counsel P.V. Balasubramaniam for Thriyambak J.Kannan