INDRP tribunal accepts KVIC as the legitimate owner of ‘Khadi’ trademark

The National Internet Exchange of India Domain Dispute Policy (INDRP) Arbitration Tribunal in New Delhi has ruled Khadi is not a generic name and the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) is the legitimate owner of the trademarks ‘Khadi’ and ‘Khadi India.’ The order was passed on a complaint filed by KVIC against Delhi-based entrepreneur Jitendra Jain for running a domain named www.khadi.in.

The tribunal ordered Jain to transfer the domain name to KVIC. The tribunal further said impugnation of the domain name not only violates the provisions of the Trade Marks Act 1999 but also violates Clause 4 of the INDPR policy issued by the NIXI. The Tribunal also instructed the National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) to take incidental or ancillary action involved in the transfer of the domain name, as directed.

Vinai Kumar Saxena, Chairman, KVIC said, the order will bolster Khadi’s fight against violation of its brand name and help protect the legitimate rights of Khadi artisans. KVIC has been aggressively fighting legal battles to protect its brand names and logos , he said and referred to an order passed in March by the Delhi High Court which restrained a firm from using brand name Khadi and the Charkha symbol to sell its products under the name ‘IWEARKHADI.’.