Delhi High Court Rejects Injunction in Hero Motocorp vs. Shree Amba Bike Front Fender Design Dispute

Meta description - Delhi High Court denies injunction in Hero Motocorp vs. Shree Amba case over bike front fender design dispute.

Keywords - Delhi High Court, injunction, Hero Motocorp, Shree Amba Industries, bike front fender design dispute.

Delhi High Court Refuses Temporary Ban on Bike Manufacturer in Hero Motocorp versus Shree Amba Industries Case

The Delhi High Court has declined Hero Motocorp's plea for a temporary prohibition on a bike manufacturer, Shree Amba Industries, from marketing a front fender design for its motorcycles. Hero Motocorp claimed that this design resembled its patented V-shaped front fender design used on "HERO HF DELUXE" bikes.

Justice Amit Bansal, the judge overseeing the case, declared that Hero Motocorp had not managed to establish a strong case warranting a provisional injunction in their favor. Justice Bansal also noted that awarding such an injunction could inflict irreparable harm upon Shree Amba Industries. This ruling followed a prior decision in March that allowed Shree Amba Industries to modify their written statement to question the validity of Hero's V-shaped front fender design under the Designs Act.

Justice Bansal stressed that, in contrast to the Trade Marks Act of 1999, the Designs Act did not automatically presume a design's validity upon registration. He offered his initial perspective that Hero's front fender design might not fulfill the prerequisites for registration under Section 2(a) of the Designs Act, as it did not establish uniqueness and originality. The court emphasized that a motorcycle's front fender is an external component visible to observers and lacks an independent commercial identity.

The court interpreted Section 2(a) of the Indian statute to encompass elements of articles that could be independently sold as distinct commodities, rather than mere substitutes or accessories. Justice Bansal clarified, however, that this stance was a preliminary viewpoint and that the broader issue of registering spare parts remained unresolved.

Justice Bansal also differed from the Bombay High Court's division bench verdict in Marico Limited v. Raj Oil Mills Ltd., contending that it departed from the court's interpretation. Furthermore, the court dismissed the notion that spare parts must possess an independent existence as a criterion.

Despite rejecting Hero Motocorp's appeal for an interim injunction, the court instructed Shree Amba Industries to furnish an exhaustive statement of accounts detailing the production and sales of their front fender design from the commencement of the lawsuit in 2018 until the present time. The court also mandated half-yearly statements of accounts for Shree Amba Industries' front fender sales until further instructions. This decision underscores the complexities inherent in design registrations and spare part disputes within the Indian legal framework.