In the ongoing trademark infringement case between Capital Foods and Radiant Indus Chem, Capital Foods has secured interim relief from the Delhi High Court’s Division Bench.
The court’s order, which was issued on January 25th, noted that Radiant Indus Chem had copied Capital Foods’ stylization, colour combination, trade dress, and copyrights in its advertising material for the ‘Schezwan Chutney’ product.
Capital Foods had originally trademarked the name ‘Schezwan Chutney’ for its Ching’s Secret brand in 2017. However, upon discovering that Radiant Indus Chem’s Mrs Food Rite brand was using the same name and design, Capital Foods filed a trademark infringement case at the Delhi High Court. In its case, Capital Foods claimed that Radiant Indus Chem not only breached the trademark but also duplicated its website contents and trade dress.
In the court hearing, Capital Foods argued that the ‘Schezwan Chutney’ name and design, which infuses the ‘Desi Chinese’ element, is unique to Ching’s Secret and has been developed over the years through extensive promotion in the Indian market. Capital Foods also highlighted its substantial investments in the product, including over Rs 273 crores spent on promotion between 2012-16, and sales worth over Rs 316 crores for the same product.
A Spokesperson of Capital food, said “Schezwan Chutney is not the category’s name. It is our brand name. Our rival brands can name their Schezwan products as sauce, dip, spread or whatever else but chutney. Schezwan Chutney as a name didn’t exist previously unless Ching’s first introduced it. We were the first to manufacture it commercially and term it ‘Schezwan Chutney’ in Mid of 2012. We have created a consumer base from nothing. Other rival brands cannot come in, copy us and ride on our success.”
In January 2023, a single judge bench of the Delhi High Court declined to grant an injunction, stating that the mark was simply a term describing the product. However, Capital Foods appealed to the Division Bench, citing the uniqueness of its trademark ‘Schezwan Chutney’ due to its popularity, large-scale sales, and the costs incurred by the company in advertising and promoting the product. The Division Bench ultimately granted interim relief to Capital Foods.
