Delhi High Court Issues Permanent Injunction Against Local Dhabas For Trademark Infringement of Murthal’s ‘Mannat Dhaba’
Delhi High Court has permanently restrained highway dhabas from using the trademark of Murthal’s famous 'Mannat Dhaba'. The Court ruled in favor of Mannat Group of Hotels, citing deliberate trademark infringement and passing off by the defendants.
Murthal’s Mannat Dhaba Wins Trademark Battle in Delhi High Court, In a significant ruling on trademark protection, the Delhi High Court has permanently barred several roadside dhabas located along the Delhi-Dehradun highway from using the registered trademark of the well-known Murthal-based eatery, "Mannat Dhaba."
Justice Amit Bansal, while delivering the verdict, noted that Mannat Group of Hotels has established undeniable rights over its registered trademark 'MANNAT'. The Court found that the defendant dhabas were deliberately capitalizing on the goodwill and brand recognition associated with Mannat Dhaba by using deceptively similar branding and names.
The legal battle was initiated by Mannat Group of Hotels and its promoter, Virender Singh Kadyan, who accused multiple highway restaurants of infringing upon their trademark and engaging in "passing off" by misleading customers into believing they were connected to the original Mannat Dhaba in Murthal, a highly popular food destination in Haryana.
The Court, in January 2024, had earlier passed an interim order restraining the defendants from using the disputed trademarks. With this latest ruling, the injunction has now been made permanent. Justice Bansal remarked that the defendants had "slavishly and deliberately adopted and used the plaintiffs' brands and trademarks" with the intention of causing confusion among the public.
The Court further observed that there was a blatant violation of both the statutory and common law rights vested in Mannat Group's trademarks. The ruling emphasized that the defendant dhabas had, "with mala fide intentions," adopted the 'MANNAT' branding with minor variations while offering identical services, namely running highway hotels and restaurants.
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Given the clear evidence of infringement and the deliberate misuse of the trademark, the Court upheld the claims of both trademark violation and passing off against the defendants.
The case has been titled: MANNAT GROUP OF HOTELS PRIVATE LIMITED & ANR. v. M/S MANNAT DHABA & ORS.
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