Delhi High Court passes Ex Parte Order in Favor of Vistara Airlines in Trademark Infringement Suit

Delhi High Court passes Ex Parte Order in Favor of Vistara Airlines in Trademark Infringement Suit

The Delhi High Court temporarily restrained a real estate construction company, Vistara Buildtech, from using the ‘Vistara’ mark of Vistara Airlines.

The single judge Justice C Hari Shankar noted that the word 'Vistara' coined by the airline had no meaning or etymological significance, and that the defendants came into existence in 2022 and were yet to begin operations.

“VISTARA is a coined word, which has no known meaning or etymological significance. The plaintiff has been using the mark VISTARA since at least 2015, and the plaint asserts that the defendants as a partnership firm came into existence in 2022 and are yet to commence building operations under the impugned marks,” the Court said.

Hence, the Court held that the airline had the advantage of priority of use over the construction company.

The airline was aggrieved by the use of the mark by the defendants in connection with commercial properties being developed by them.

They issued a cease-and-desist notice to the defendants on 2 January, 2023. This was followed by a reminder on January 19, 2023. However, there was no response to either of the notices.

Aggrieved, they moved the High Court, seeking an injunction against the defendants using the impugned marks in any manner, as the marks were likely to lead an unsuspecting consumer to believe that defendants’ activities have some association with the airline.

The Court held that a prima facie case was made out by the airline. “The plaintiff has made out a clear prima facie case of infringement and passing off in its favor and against the defendants. The defendants are yet to commence operations. The assertions in the plaint reveal that the defendant, as a partnership firm, has itself come into existence only in 2022,” Court observed.

The Court asserted that the defendants cannot, prima facie, plead longevity of user as a defense against grant of injunction.

The Court ordered, “till the next date of hearing, the defendants and all others acting on their behalf shall stand restrained from using the mark “VISTARA” either as a word mark as part of any device marks, including the impugned marks and, in any manner whatsoever and in connection with any goods or services.”

It, therefore, restrained the defendants from using the mark 'Vistara' in connection with their goods and services till the next hearing date.

The airline was represented by advocates Kruttika Vijay, Aditya Gupta, Mukul Kochhar, Shashank Jain, Chirag Gupta and Sharad Sharma.