Delhi High Court has restrained a franchisee of schools floated by a group of Delhi Public School (DPS) alumni, including former Union minister Salman Khurshid, from using the name 'DPS' saying it would amount to trademark infringement of DPS Society.
Justice V Kameswar Rao also asked the DPS World Foundation to drop the word from its operation and barred its trustees, members, franchisees and all others acting for and on their behalf, from using the word claimed by DPS Society.
"The defendants (DPS World Foundation and members), their life trustees, terms trustees, members, franchisees, officers, employees, agents, delegates, representatives, associates and all other acting for and on their behalf, are restrained from offering their services, advertising, offering franchisees, selling goods, and stationery, adopting, using and/or dealing in any manner with the registered mark/name 'DPS' or any other mark identical or deceptively similar to the registered mark of the plaintiff (DPS Society), amounting to infringement and passing off plaintiff's registered trademark till the disposal of this suit," the court said.
The court's order came on a suit filed by DPS Society accusing the foundation of trademark violation by using the DPS acronym in schools affiliated to the latter's trust.
It also sought direction to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India to shut down the websites www.Dpsworldfoundation.Com and e-mail address operated by the defendants.
Senior advocate Sandeep Sethi, appearing for DPS Society, had contended that the distinctive crest with a torch (mashaal) held in a hand inside a shield, had been used by the DPS schools since 1948.
The Society had alleged that the foundation was opening schools using the name DPS World School, which amounted to infringement of the society's copyright.
On the other hand, senior advocate Amit Sibal contended that the founding trustee of DPS World Foundation included Louise Khurshid, who is the spouse of a 'Dipsite' (DPS alumni) and former President of the Society and a parent to Dipsites, thus taking her association to the world of Dipsites to over 30 years.
He had argued that the foundation had no intent to mislead anyone, nor did it want to have any association with the Society in any manner.
Sibal submitted that as far as Salman Khurshid is concerned, he was one of the most well known and prominent alumni of the Society and that DPS had become synonymous with him and every Dipsite proudly represented himself/herself as a product of his school.
