The Delhi High Court has held that any person in India has the legal right to import second-hand goods bearing a registered trademark and sell them in the country, as long as there is full and honest disclosure to the consumer. This significant ruling came during the case of Western Digital Technologies Inc. & Anr. v. Hansraj Dugar, concerning the import of hard disk drives (HDDs) by the defendant.
"Any person in India has the right to legally import goods from abroad bearing the trademarks of an entity and sell the same in India," Justice Amit Bansal observed, clarifying that this right is conditional upon making it clear that the goods are second-hand and do not come with any manufacturer warranty.
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The case originated when Western Digital, a global HDD manufacturer, objected to the defendant importing HDDs that bore their trademark. The defendant contended that these were legally purchased from original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) abroad and were not counterfeit or altered.
The Court referenced previous important judgments, including:
- Kapil Wadhwa v. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (2012), where the High Court allowed the sale of imported goods with trademarks as long as sellers disclosed that the goods were not covered under the brand’s warranty.
- Seagate Technology LLC v. Daichi International (2024), which extended the same legal reasoning to refurbished and used electronic goods, provided transparency was maintained.
"Import and resale of goods bearing the trademark of the registered proprietor is permissible as long as the condition of said goods is not changed or impaired," the Court emphasized, reinforcing the concept of international exhaustion under Sections 30(3) and 30(4) of the Trade Marks Act.
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The Court firmly rejected the plaintiff’s claim under Section 29(6) of the Act, explaining:
“While import using a registered trademark could typically amount to infringement, the defense under Section 30(3) prevails when goods are lawfully acquired and sold with full disclosure.”
The judgement clarified that no Indian law or regulation explicitly bans the import of second-hand or "end-of-life" goods bearing trademarks, as long as they are genuine products.
The Court also ordered that the HDDs previously seized at customs can be released to the defendant:
“In case the defendant wishes to resell the imported goods without refurbishment, they would be free to do so while adhering to disclosure norms. However, if the goods are refurbished, then additional guidelines from the Daichi judgment must be followed.”
These guidelines require clear packaging and promotional materials stating:
- The goods are refurbished.
- There is no warranty from the original manufacturer.
- The refurbisher alone provides any post-sale service.
Western Digital’s objection that these imports mislead customers was dismissed on the grounds that no misrepresentation had occurred, as the products had not yet been sold in India.
In conclusion, the Delhi High Court reaffirmed that trademark holders cannot prevent the resale of genuine goods imported legally, provided consumers are not misled.
Appearance: Ms. Shwetasree Majumder, Mr. Prithvi Singh and Ms. Devyasni Nath, Advocates for Plaintiff; Mr. Sidharth Chopra, Mr. Kanishk Kumar, Mr. Angad Makkar and Mr. Priyansh Kohli, Advocates for Defendant
Case title: Western Digital Technologies Inc. & Anr. v. Hansraj Dugar
Case no.: CS(COMM) 586/2019
