Bombay High Court Upholds Interim Order Restraining New Indian Express' Use Of 'Indian Express' Mark Beyond Southern States

The Bombay High Court has upheld an interim order restraining Express Publications (Madurai) Pvt. Ltd. from using the title "The New Indian Express" outside the southern states for which it was granted rights.

A division bench of Justice Bharati Dangre and Justice Manjusha Deshpande said there was no "perversity" in the order passed by the single-judge holding that prima facie the trademark "Indian Express" is exclusively owned by The Indian Express (P) Ltd.

A detailed copy of the order is awaited.

Notably, single-judge Justice Riyaz Chagla had passed a detailed order on November 13, 2025, allowing the interim application filed by the Indian Express.

Justice Chagla had held that Express Publications' use of "New Indian Express" outside the specified southern States and Union Territories went beyond limited permission granted under settlement agreements between the parties.

The dispute arises from a 1995 Memorandum of Settlement (MoS), which was later made a consent decree by the Madras High Court in 1997, along with a Supplemental MoS executed in 2005. Under these agreements, Indian Express retained absolute ownership of the "Indian Express" mark, and Express Publications was granted a limited right to use the title "The New Indian Express" only for publishing its newspaper in five southern states and certain specified Union Territories.

The Indian Express had approached the High Court after Express Publications held an event titled "The New Indian Express – Mumbai Dialogues" in Mumbai in September 2024. It argued that any use of the title outside the agreed territories, whether for publication, promotion, or commercial events, violated the MoS, infringed its registered trademark, and amounted to passing off.

Express Publications responded that the MoS did not expressly prohibit advertising or promoting its newspaper outside the southern states.

However, Justice Chagla restrained Express Publications from using the said marks beyond the Southern States.

Aggrieved, the Express Publications then had appealed the single-judge's decision before the division bench led by Justice Dangre.

Case Title: Express Publications, Madurai vs The Indian Express (COMAP(L)/41053/2025)