Factual and procedural background
Grasim Industries Limited, part of the well-known Aditya Birla Group, along with Ultra Tech Cement, sued Saboo Tor Private Limited and others for trademark infringement and passing off. They claimed Saboo Tor was wrongly using the mark “BIRLA” and variants like “BIRLA TMT” and “BIRLA E-BIKE” on steel products and electric vehicles, while Grasim had registered and used “BIRLA” since the late 1980s mainly for cement and related building materials. The single judge of the Bombay High Court refused to grant a temporary injunction, saying Grasim had not produced enough documents to prove its clear link to the Birla family business and that Saboo Tor had been openly selling its products under the mark for many years without any proven confusion. Grasim appealed the order and also filed an application to place some old company records on record as additional evidence.
Dispute in question
The main point before the Division Bench was whether Grasim should be allowed to introduce fresh documents at the appeal stage to fill the gaps the single judge had noted, and whether the lower court was correct in denying an interim injunction stopping Saboo Tor from using the similar mark.
Reasoning and decision of court
The Bombay High Court Division Bench reviewed the strict rules for accepting extra evidence in appeals and found that the documents — including the scheme of arrangement transferring the white cement business and old annual reports — directly addressed the exact shortcomings identified by the single judge. The court accepted that these papers were relevant, could not have been produced earlier despite reasonable efforts, and would help the court reach a proper decision on the facts. The judges therefore allowed the application for additional evidence so that the appeal can be heard with a complete picture of Grasim’s claimed rights in the “BIRLA” mark.
Grasim Industries Limited Vs Saboo Tor Private Limited.:06.04.2026:Commercial Appeal (L) No.39319 of 2025:2026:BHC-OS:8587:BombHC:Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande.
Disclaimer: Donot treat this as substitute for legal advise as it may contain subjective errors.
Written By: Advocate Ajay Amitabh Suman, IP Adjutor [Patent and Trademark Attorney], High Court of Delhi
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