Rosabagh is a Delhi-based luxury design house engaged in manufacturing and selling with all kinds of furniture and artifacts, fabrics, carpets, wallpapers, tiles, wooden floorings and lights, including crafting custom-made furniture, and also provide consultancy services to the customers looking to build their ‘dream homes’. It was established in 2018 by Abhishek and Barkha Kathuria.
Rosabagh had adopted the namesake trademark “ROSABAGH”, a word mark, as also a device mark, as under, ‘ ’ and had also obtained registration of the said marks in July, 2019 in Class 35.
In May 2022, Kathuria came across a Facebook post of a banquet hall using the impugned mark “ROSABAGH”. On further inquiry, it was found that one Mr. Ramesh Kumar Malhotra from Rohtak had applied for the registration of the marks as given herein below, on a ‘proposed to be used’ basis.
Aggrieved by this, Mr. Kathuria filed opposition against Malhotra’s mark. Simultaneously, Kathuria also approached the Delhi High Court seeking an injunction against Malhotra restrained him from using the trademark, “ ”/ “ROSABAGH, claiming that Malhotra’s dishonest intention is evident from the fact that he had adopted not only, Kathuria’s trademark, but also, the façade of his showroom situated at Kirti Nagar, New Delhi. The same is depicted in the following photographs:
Source- Judgment
Kathuria submitted that although he is not in the business of banquets or restaurants, this would be a natural progression for him and, in any case, dilution of his trademark cannot be allowed.
The Hon’ble Court, after considering all these arguments and the contents of the relevant documents submitted, opined that the design house, Kathuria had been successful in making out a good prima facie case for the grant of an ex-parte ad-interim injunction. The balance of convenience also lay in his favour and the much-celebrated design house would likely suffer grave irreparable injury, in case the injunction as prayed for is not granted at this stage.
Accordingly, till the next date of hearing, the Court restrained Malhotra from using the trademark, “ ”/ “ROSABAGH” for his banquet or any other allied goods or services or any other mark or name identical or deceptively similar to the Kathuria’s registered trademark.