Pune firm set to drag Infomedia to SC

Pune-based Indiacom Ltd has decided to file a petition in the Supreme Court against Infomedia India, formerly Tata Infomedia Ltd.

This follows the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission (MRTPC) on January 21, 2004, accepting the apology tendered by Tata Infomedia vice-chairman and managing director H Billimoria and dismissing Indiacom's petition. The commission ordered Tata Infomedia to pay Rs 30,000 as costs to Indiacom.

The Pune-based company had approached MRTPC as Tata Infomedia had published advertisements disparaging the goods and services of Indiacom.

"We have suffered a business loss of over Rs two crore due to the misleading advertisements and plan to move the Supreme Court soon. We are examining the MRTPC order and would decide on the future course of action after consulting with our legal advisors," V Srinivasa Rao, director and company secretary, Indiacom, said on Wednesday.

Indiacom has contended that Tata Infomedia had issued offending advertisement and circulated offending brochures solely with the purpose of demeaning the services of Indiacom Ltd.

In his order, the MRTPC chairman said: "The respondent has voluntarily tendered an absolute and unconditional apology in the first instance and it cannot be held that the respondent habitually and intentionally violated the order passed by this commission, though the amount of care which is required by a company of repute is clearly lacking in the case."

"Tata Infomedia has been issuing advertisements containing misleading facts and figures about its competitors. On a compliant filed by Indiacom, formerly known as Sesa Seat, in 1996, the commission issued a Cease and Desist Order to Tata Infomedia. Immediately after the issue of the said order, Tata Infomedia repeated the act and then tendered an apology. Again, in 1999 Tata Infomedia released an advertisement with incorrect facts and again tendered an apology," Rao said.

"In 2002, the Pune branch of Tata Infomedia violated the undertaking given to MRTPC and circulated a disparaging brochure. Indiacom this time filed a contempt petition against H Billimoria, vice-chairman and managing director, Tata Infomedia, and the company for willful disobedience and violation of the MRTPC order dated October 30, 1996. We argued before the MRTPC that the apology submitted by Tata Infomedia is not a product of remorse but only a hollow apology," he added.

Tata Infomedia on the other hand contends that it (the advertisements) was an inadvertent omission on their part without any intention of committing breach or showing any disrespect to the MRTPC order.

Tata Infomedia officials could not be reached for comments.