Delhi High Court: In a suit filed by the plaintiff seeking relief of permanent injunction restraining the defendants from infringing on the plaintiff’s trademarks and copyright, as well as from passing off their services as those of the plaintiff, along with other ancillary relief , Amit Bansal, J., stated that the plaintiff fulfilled all the criteria set out in Section 11(6) read with Section 11(7) of the Trade Marks Act, 1999 (‘the Act’) for declaring the 
(‘TAJ marks’) as well-known trade marks in respect of hotels and other related services in the hospitality industry. The Court passed a decree declaring the e TAJ marks as well-known trade marks within the meaning of Section 2(1)(zg) of the Act.
Background
The plaintiff, a company incorporated on 1-1-1902, was a part of the TATA Group of Companies, which was India’s oldest, largest, most trusted and best-known business conglomerate. The plaintiff and its subsidiaries bring together a group of brands and businesses in the hospitality industry and they include TAJ, SeleQtions, VIVANTA and GINGER.
The plaintiff opened its first hotel (The Taj Mahal Palace) in Mumbai in 1903, which now enjoyed a legacy of over 120 years across consumers and businesses. Thereafter, the plaintiff’s business under the brand had expanded across cities, countries and continents.
The plaintiff commenced use of the mark 
in the year 2016. The plaintiff was one of the pioneers in the hospitality industry not only in India but also across the globe. The plaintiff had a portfolio of about 350 hotels including 118 under development globally across 4 continents, 13 countries and in over 130 locations. The plaintiff was South Asia’s largest hospitality company by market capitalization and was primarily listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange.
The plaintiff had filed several documents and data in the present suit, to satisfy each of the factors enumerated in the Sections 11(6) and 11(7) of the Act, as being relevant in deciding whether the TAJ marks were eligible to be declared as well-known trade marks.
Analysis, Law, and Decision
The Court after careful perusal of the submissions made by the plaintiff, stated that the plaintiffs had established well beyond doubt that the TAJ marks had acquired the status of well-known trade marks, within the meaning and scope of Section 2(1)(zg) of the Act. The Court stated that it was pertinent to note that another mark of the plaintiff, i.e. ‘VIVANTA’ which was also being used in relation to hotels, had already been declared as a well-known trade mark in Indian Hotels Company Ltd v. Grand Vivanta Vacations (P) Ltd., 2022 SCC OnLine Del 3104.
The Court stated that the long duration for which the TAJ marks have been in use by the plaintiff, wide geographical area of their use, their knowledge among the general public and their goodwill and reputation due to the extensive promotion, publicity and extensive revenue generated by the plaintiff, in India as well as other countries, the TAJ marks had achieved the status of well-known trade marks.
Accordingly, the Court stated that the plaintiff fulfilled all the criteria set out in Section 11(6) read with Section 11(7) of the Act for declaring the TAJ marks as well-known trade marks in respect of hotels and other related services in the hospitality industry. Thus, the Court passed a decree declaring the TAJ marks as well-known trade marks within the meaning of Section 2(1)(zg) of the Act.
[Indian Hotels Co. Ltd. v. Gaurav Roy Bhatt, CS(COMM) 717 of 2023, decided on 11-03-2025]
Advocates who appeared in this case:
For the Plaintiff: Pravin Anand, Achuthan Sreekumar, Rohil Bansal and Swastik Bisarya, Advocates.
For the Defendants: Abhyanand, Advocate.
