Supreme Court Appoints Former CJI B R Gavai To Mediate Veda Seed- Kohinoor Trademark Dispute
Kirit Singhania
20 Feb 2026 8:40 PM IST
The Supreme Court on Friday appointed former Chief Justice of India Justice B.R. Gavai to mediate a trademark dispute between Veda Seed Sciences Pvt. Ltd and Kohinoor Seed Fields India Pvt. Ltd., while staying further proceedings in the suit before the Delhi High Court.
A Bench of Justices K.V. Viswanathan and Atul S. Chandurkar recorded that the parties had “favourably responded to the suggestion of the Court that an amicable resolution of the dispute be explored through the process of mediation.”
The court observed, "Considering the stakes involved, we appoint Hon'ble Mr. Justice B.R. Gavai, the former Chief Justice of India to mediate the dispute between the parties.”
It further directed, "In the meantime, there shall be stay of further proceedings of the Suit.”
The dispute relates to allegations of trademark infringement and passing off concerning cotton hybrid seeds sold under the marks “TADAAKHA”, “SADANAND” and “BASANT”.
Kohinoor Seed Fields India Pvt. Ltd had instituted a commercial suit before the Delhi High Court against Veda Seed Sciences Pvt. Ltd, alleging infringement of its registered trademarks “TADAAKHA” and “SADANAND”, and passing off in respect of “BASANT”.
The suit alleged that after termination of a co-marketing arrangement between the parties, Veda continued to use identical or deceptively similar marks for hybrid seeds not produced by Kohinoor.
On December 3, 2025, a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court upheld the return of the plaint holding that no part of the cause of action arose in Delhi. The court held that registration of trademarks in Delhi or listing of products on e-commerce platforms accessible in Delhi was insufficient to confer territorial jurisdiction in the absence of pleadings showing targeted commercial activity within Delhi.
Challenging this finding, Veda Seed Sciences Pvt. Ltd. has filed a special leave petition before the Supreme Court.
The matter has been listed on April 6, 2026.
For Petitioner: Senior Advocates Rajshekhar Rao with Advocates Raavi Yogesh Venkata, Thithiksha Padmam, Twinkle Rathi, Vishakha Gupta, Wamic Wasim, Sindoora Vnl, AOR
For Respondent: Advocates Saurav Agrawal, Shantanu Agarwal, Adarsh Ramanujan, Allaka M, Raghav Thareja, Tazeen Ahmed, Ajay Sharma, Parth Singh, Rasveen Kaur Kapoor, Dheeraj P Deo, AOR