Saudi firm accused of using Keltron logo

The state-owned Kerala State Electronics Development Corporation (Keltron) has decried the sale of duplicate electronic goods by illegally using its brand name by Aphia Electronics, a Saudi Arabia-based electronics company in the Gulf region.

Keltron managing director Minhaj Alam said in a statement here that the rampant sale of fake Keltron electronic goods in Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam, Buraidha and Kameez Musad had been taken note of by the corporation.

This was brought to the notice of Keltron following enquiries by Gulf returnees who had brought these fake goods for servicing at Keltron's authorised service centres in Kerala.

The Saudi Arabian firm was understood to have sold China-made goods such as VCD/DVD players, iron boxes, MP3 players and the likes after affixing the Keltron logo to buyers in the Gulf, a majority of whom are non-resident Keralites.

To make the matters worse, the Saudi Arabian firm is alleged to have even convinced the customers of the validity of the warranty on these goods in Kerala.

The Keltron managing director said that a legal notice had been served to Aphia Electronics during the beginning of the year after the issue was brought to its notice.

"However, the company is yet to respond to the notice and is continuing with the sale of these goods under the Keltron brandname."

He added that the Keltron trade logo and registration were valid only within India.

Alam also said that Keltron had taken note of the fact that the Saudi firm widely advertised these products in the print media in the Gulf region with the trademark and logo of Keltron.