Delhi High Court – Orders
Fdc Limited vs Neeraj Agarwal And Anr on 11 March, 2026
Author: Jyoti Singh
Bench: Jyoti Singh
$~52
* IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
+ CS(COMM) 221/2026
FDC LIMITED .....Plaintiff
Through: Mr. Prithvi Singh, Mr. Prithvi Gulati
and Mr. Krtin Bhasin, Advocates.
versus
NEERAJ AGARWAL AND ANR .....Defendants
Through:
CORAM:
HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE JYOTI SINGH
ORDER
% 11.03.2026
I.A. 6051/2026 (Exemption)
1. Allowed, subject to all just exceptions.
2. Application stands disposed of.
I.A. 6049/2026 (for pre-institution mediation)
3. This application is filed on behalf of the Plaintiff under Section 12-A
of the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 read with Section 151 CPC seeking
exemption from Pre-Institution Mediation.
4. Having regard to the facts of the present case wherein urgent relief is
prayed for and in light of the judgment of Supreme Court in Yamini
Manohar v. T.K.D. Keerthi, (2024) 5 SCC 815, as also Division Bench of
this Court in Chandra Kishore Chaurasia v. RA Perfumery Works Private
Ltd., 2022 SCC OnLine Del 3529, exemption is granted to the Plaintiff from
Pre-Institution Mediation.
5. Application is allowed and disposed of.
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 1 of 11
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I.A. 6050/2026 (u/O XI Rule 1 (4) of Commercial Courts Act, 2015 r/w
Section 151 CPC)
6. This application is filed on behalf of the Plaintiff seeking to place on
record additional documents.
7. Plaintiff, if it wishes to file additional documents at a later stage, shall
do so strictly in accordance with provisions of the Commercial Courts Act,
2015.
8. Application is allowed and disposed of.
CS(COMM) 221/2026
9. Let plaint be registered as a suit.
10. Upon filing of process fee, issue summons to the Defendants through
all permissible modes, returnable before the learned Joint Registrar on
02.04.2026.
11. Summons shall state that the written statements shall be filed by
the Defendants within 30 days from the receipt of summons along
with affidavits of admission/denial of the documents filed by the
Plaintiff.
12. It will be open to the Plaintiff to file replications within 30 days from
the date of receipt of written statements along with affidavit of
admission/denial of documents filed by the Defendants.
13. If any of the parties wish to seek inspection of any documents, the
same be sought and given the timeline prescribed in Delhi High Court
(Original Side) Rules, 2018.
14. Learned Joint Registrar will carry out admission/denial of documents
and marking of exhibits.
I.A. 6048/2026 (u/O XXXIX Rules 1 and 2 r/w Section 151 CPC)
15. This application is filed on behalf of the Plaintiff under Order XXXIX
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 2 of 11
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Rules 1 and 2 read with Section 151 of CPC for grant of ex parte ad interim
injunction.
16. Issue notice to the Defendants through all permissible modes,
returnable before Court on 27.04.2026.
17. Case of the Plaintiff as set out in the plaint is that Plaintiff is a
company incorporated on 23.09.1940 under the Indian Companies Act,
1913. Plaintiff started its operations in the year 1936, marketing vitamins
and a range of prescription formulations and set up its first manufacturing
facility in 1949. In 1963, Plaintiff became the first company to start the
manufacture of specialized ophthalmic formulations in India apart from
being the first organization to introduce the BFS (Blow-Fill-Seal)
technology for ophthalmic in Southeast Asia. Plaintiff’s API plant at Roha,
Maharashtra was among the first few API facilities in India to get US-FDA
approval in 1985. Plaintiff, backed by an extensive distributor network
comprising of medical representatives and stockists, ensures that its products
reach across the length and breadth of the country and even to small towns
and villages. Plaintiff’s business grew from year to year and this is evident
from annual revenue of Rs. 2,07,011 Lakhs in the financial year 2024-2025.
Currently, Plaintiff markets more than 300 products in India and exports
many of these to over 50 countries.
18. It is stated that Plaintiff has presence in numerous therapeutic
segments such as anti-infectives, gastrointestinal, ophthalmological,
vitamins/minerals/dietary supplements, cardiac, anti-diabetes, respiratory,
gynaecology, dermatological, analgesics and boasts of various brand names
such as ZIFI, ELECTRAL, ENERZAL, VTTCOFOL, PYRIMON, ZOCON,
and ZIPOD. Plaintiff has received several awards and recognitions for the
ELECTRAL brand, such as Brand of the Year (Bronze Award) in 2015,
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 3 of 11
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Brand of the Year (Silver Award) in 2016 & 2018 and Global Eminence
Digital Award in the category of “Use of innovative technology for Dr.
Engagement” in 2019. In 1972, Plaintiff pioneered the concept of Oral
Rehydration Salts (ORS) under the trademark ELECTRAL, which is used
for dehydration in case of loss of water from the body due to diarrhoea,
dysentery etc. Plaintiff’s product ELECTRAL is available in salts and
solution forms and has been a phenomenal success and currently holds a
significant market share.
19. It is stated that Plaintiff is the registered proprietor of the
ELECTRAL, word and logo, along with various iterations of the trade dress,
containing the white and green colour combination. The registrations are
valid and subsisting. Details of Plaintiff’s trademarks’ registrations are as
follows:-
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 4 of 11
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20. It is stated that the trade dress/packaging for the products sold under
the ELECTRAL trademark are well-known among customers as well as
among people in the trade. The green-and-white packaging/trade dress
serves as a source identifier of Plaintiff’s products and is as follows:-
21. It is stated that the classic green-and-white packaging constitutes an
original artistic work within the meaning of Section 2(c) of the Copyright
Act, 1957 and Plaintiff has secured copyright registration in the packaging
as follows:-
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 5 of 11
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22. It is stated that Plaintiff has carried out extensive promotional
campaigns for its ELECTRAL products through various media across India
which has resulted in voluminous sales and this is reflected from the audited
sales and promotional figures, which for the last 5 years are as under:-
23. It is stated that Plaintiff has been selling ELECTRAL in India for
more than 5 decades and has used various iterations of the classic product
packaging. Plaintiff’s extensive distributor network has ensured that
Plaintiff’s ELECTRAL products are widely available in all corners of India.
The products are also available at leading e-pharmacies, e-commerce
websites and e-grocery stores such as Amazon, Flipkart, PharmEasy, 1MG,
Apollo Pharmacy, NetMeds, BlinkIt, Wellness forever, etc. Plaintiff also
owns and maintains a dedicated website https://www.electral.co.in/ which
contains information about Plaintiff’s ELECTRAL products. Plaintiff’s
ELECTRAL’s trade dress/packaging has achieved an iconic status in
consumer consciousness. Plaintiff has been vigilant about its rights in the
classic and derivative product packaging and has filed various lawsuits and
issued numerous cease-and-desist notices to third parties who have infringed
upon and attempted to pass off their products as those of the Plaintiff.
Plaintiff’s trademark ELECTRAL was also declared as a well-known
trademark by the Trade Marks Registry vide publication in Trade Marks
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 6 of 11
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Journal No. 2120 dated 04.09.2023.
24. It is stated that Defendant No. 1 is the sole proprietor of Cadiz
Lifescience and is engaged in the business of marketing pharmaceutical
products under the mark ELECTROCAD, for which he has adopted trade
dress/packaging , which is deceptively similar to Plaintiff’s trade
dress/packaging for ELECTRAL. Defendant No. 2 is the third-party contract
manufacturer, engaged solely in the manufacturing of pharmaceutical
products. In October, 2025, Plaintiff came across Defendants’ product
ELECTROCAD in packaging which imitates the ELECTRAL product
packaging of the Plaintiff and Plaintiff issued a cease-and-desist notice on
29.10.2025, however, Defendant No. 1 failed to reply at the initial stage
and/or cease and desist to sell his product under the impugned trade
dress/packaging. In reply dated 26.02.2026, Defendant No.1 denied the
allegations and claimed dissimilarity between the marks but did not address
the issue of similarity in the rival trade dress/packaging.
25. Learned counsel for the Plaintiff submits that Defendants have
dishonestly adopted the product packaging for the product ELECTROCAD
which features a green-and-white colour combination and is deceptively
similar to the trade dress/packaging of Plaintiff’s ELECTRAL products and
also includes a similar font style and bold underlining. Defendants have
made every effort to come as close as possible to Plaintiff’s trade
dress/packaging by retaining the overall look and feel and colour scheme of
the product of the Plaintiff.
26. It is urged that Defendants have replicated the packaging and it is
clear that the impugned trade dress/packaging could not have been
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 7 of 11
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developed without keeping ELECTRAL trade dress/packaging in mind. This
reflects the mala fide adoption by the Defendants and the resemblance is
neither accidental nor incidental. Rival products are sold through identical
trade channels including pharmacists and medical distributors and are
targeted at same class of consumers, thereby increasing the likelihood of
confusion amongst the consumers and the members of the public that the
product of the Defendants originate from the Plaintiff. Moreover, the
products in question are sold over-the-counter and consumed by people from
all walks of life which includes illiterate people, incapable of reading brand
names and rely on visual memory and imperfect recollection.
27. It is further argued that by use of a deceptively similar trademark
ELECTROCAD, Defendants have infringed the registered mark
ELECTRAL since the usage of identical products and confusion is
inevitable. By imitating the packaging of Plaintiff’s ELECTRAL,
Defendants have infringed the copyright vested in the Plaintiff. Plaintiff is a
dominant player in the ORS market for over 50 years and can boast of sale
of products worth over Rs.366 crores in the financial year 2023-2024 and
has thus acquired a formidable reputation and goodwill in the market. The
unauthorized use of a deceptively similar trade dress/packaging by the
Defendants is causing immense damage to the goodwill and reputation of
Plaintiff’s brand equity and also diluting its distinctive trade
dress/packaging. There is no doubt that the packaging has been copied to
misrepresent to the public that Defendants’ products belong to the
Plaintiff or have some association with the Plaintiff. Clearly, Defendants
are attempting to pass off their goods as those of the Plaintiff and
therefore, Plaintiff is entitled to ex parte ad interim injunction against the
Defendants.
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 8 of 11
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28. Plaintiff is the registered proprietor of the trademark ELECTRAL and
has a copyright in its unique trade dress/packaging. Prima facie Defendants
have attempted to imitate and copy the trade dress/packaging of the Plaintiff
which is unique and distinctive with an iconic green and white colour
combination with ELECTRAL in a distinct font style and underlining.
Comparative of the rival trade dress/packaging is as follows:-
Plaintiff’s Product Defendants’ Product
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 9 of 11
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29. Having heard counsel for the Plaintiff and upon perusal of the
documents, I am of the view, Plaintiff has made out a prima facie for grant
of ex parte ad interim injunction against the Defendants. Balance of
convenience lies in favour of the Plaintiff and it is likely to suffer irreparable
harm in case the interim injunction, as prayed for, is not granted.
30. Plaintiff is a popular and well known ORS brand and has earned
formidable goodwill and reputation by selling the ELECTRAL products for
over 50 years. The sales figures of Rs.366 crores in financial year 2023-
2024 are reflective of the enviable reputation earned by the Plaintiff in the
market. Defendants have copied the impugned packaging and have prima
facie attempted to come as close as possible to Plaintiff’s packaging with a
view to misrepresent to the public and members of the trade that their
products emanate from the Plaintiff or have some association with the
Plaintiff, so as to ride over the goodwill of the Plaintiff, which it has built
over the years. It is significant that the product in question is an over-the-
counter product and is bought by consumers without any prescription and/or
regulation and also by consumers from all walks of life, some of whom may
not be educated enough to remember the brand name on the packaging.
Trade channels and consumers being common for the product in question,
there is every likelihood of confusion amongst the members of the public.
31. Accordingly, till the next date of hearing, Defendants, their
proprietors, directors, servants, agents, distributors, and all others acting in
active concert with them are restrained from:-
a) manufacturing, marketing, offering for sale, selling, advertising,
directly or indirectly dealing in any products bearing the impugnedCS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 10 of 11
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trade dress/packaging for their product ELECTROCAD
and/or any other trade dress/packaging confusingly or deceptively
similar to Plaintiff’s ELECTRAL trade dress/packaging, thus
amounting to passing off.
b) manufacturing, marketing, offering for sale, selling, advertising,
directly or indirectly dealing in any products bearing the impugned
trade dress/packaging and/or any trade dress/packaging
confusingly or deceptively similar Plaintiff’s ELECTRAL trade
dress/packaging, thus amounting to infringement of Plaintiff’s
copyright in the artistic work comprised in its products’ packaging.
32. Plaintiff shall comply with the provisions of Order XXXIX Rule 3
CPC within a period of two weeks from today.
JYOTI SINGH, J
MARCH 11, 2026/YA
CS(COMM) 221/2026 Page 11 of 11
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