Hamdard National Foundation v. Amazon India Limited
In the High Court of Delhi
CS (Comm) 607/2022
Before Justice Prathiba M. Singh
Decided on September 5, 2022

Relevancy of the case: Takedown of product listings from an e-commerce platform due to trademark infringement

Statutes and Provisions Involved

• The Legal Metrology Act, 2009
• The Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006
• The Information Technology Act, 2000

Relevant Facts of the Case

• Hamdard National Foundation and Hamdard Laboratories India manufacture and sell various Ayurvedic medicines, oils, and syrups. The mark Rooh Afza was registered in India on August 3, 1942. 
• The plaintiffs noticed various Rooh Afza products on Amazon India. The sellers were M/s Royal Sales and M/s Good Health Enterprises. As soon as Amazon India received the notice, it took down the aforementioned listings.
• M/s Golden Leaf posted another listing for products manufactured in Pakistan that do not comply with legal requirements.

Prominent Arguments by the Advocates

• The plaintiff’s counsel submitted that Golden Leaf sold the products under the name ‘Rooh Afza’ on Amazon India. He argued that Pakistan-made Rooh Afza did not comply with the provisions of the Legal Metrology Act, 2009, and the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. Moreover, any consumer is likely to be confused by the products. Hamdard Laboratory in Pakistan claimed to have manufactured the product on three different occasions, and no other details were provided other than the manufacturer’s name.

Opinion of the Bench

• Since Amazon is an intermediary, it must disclose the seller’s name.
• Any further listings infringing the plaintiff’s Rooh Afza mark be brought to Amazon India’s notice and taken down.

Final Decision

• The high court decreed the suit in favour of the plaintiffs.

Aparna Ajay, an undergraduate student at Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad, prepared this case summary during her internship with The Cyber Blog India in January/February 2023.