Delhi High Court Grants Relief To Tesla Inc, Extends Bar on Indian Company's Use of 'Tesla' Marks In EV Market

The Delhi High Court on Monday granted relief to the U.S.-based electric vehicle company Tesla Inc. by directing that the undertaking earlier given by the India-based Tesla Power India Pvt. Ltd., stating that it will not manufacture or market electric vehicles or use any mark deceptively similar to 'Tesla' for EVs, shall continue until the trademark infringement suit is finally decided.In its judgment dated November 24, 2025, the single bench of Justice Tejas Karia held that the dominant and essential feature of the Indian company's impugned marks was the word “TESLA.” The Court found the marks to be identical to Tesla Inc.'s and said that the similarity of marks, goods and trade channels together created a case of “triple identity” warranting interim relief. Tesla Inc. had approached the Court earlier this year seeking a permanent injunction to restrain Tesla Power India from using the marks “TESLA POWER,” “TESLA POWER USA,” accompanying logos and related domain names. Tesla Inc. relied on its prior registrations and its extensive international use of the TESLA mark, arguing that the Indian company's marks prominently feature the word “TESLA,” thereby creating a likelihood of consumer confusion.Tesla Power India opposed the suit by claiming that it uses the mark only for lead-acid batteries, which it said are distinct from Tesla Inc.'s products. It further argued that several third parties use “TESLA” and that Tesla Inc. has not shown exclusive rights in India for all goods covered in the suit. After reviewing the pleadings and documents, the court held that Tesla Inc. had established prior registrations and a substantial global reputation in the TESLA marks. The Court concluded that the company had made out a strong prima facie case for interim protection. The court also found that the Indian company appeared to be leveraging Tesla Inc.'s reputation, particularly by adopting the name “TESLA POWER USA.” The court said this name “appears to be with an intention to mislead the customers into believing that the technology that the Defendants are using originated in the USA and that the Defendants are connected with the Plaintiff, which is based in the USA.” It further held that the likelihood of confusion was “very high,” noting that the goods were allied and cognate and that “TESLA” remained the dominant and identical element. The court reiterated that trademark law does not require proof of actual confusion, although Tesla Inc. had placed on record several instances showing that consumers and even reputed media organisations had mistakenly believed the Indian company was associated with Tesla Inc. “Addition of descriptive terms like 'USA' and 'POWER' are not enough to distinguish the goods and services of the Defendants from those of the Plaintiff. A consumer of average intelligence and imperfect recollection would be unable to distinguish between the competing products,” the court added. Rejecting the argument that 'TESLA' is a generic trade name, the Court observed that the defence was not available to the Indian company since it had itself applied for registration of the disputed marks. Consequently, the Court allowed the interim application and directed that the undertaking previously given by the Indian company shall remain operative until final disposal of the suit. The Court clarified that the direction covers advertising and promotion in any medium including the internet and e-commerce platforms and also extends to selling or dealing in lead-acid batteries for automobiles, inverters and UPS. Case Title: Tesla Inc. v. Tesla Power India Private Limited & Ors.Citation: 2025 LiveLaw (Del) 1607 Case Number: CS(COMM) 353/2024 For Plaintiff: Senior Advocate Chander M. Lall with Advocates Raghav Malik, Nancy Roy, Prakriti Varshney, Lalit Alley, Annanya and Prashant, For Defendant: Senior Advocate Sai Deepak with Advocates Mohit Goel,Sidhant Goel, Abhishek Kotnala, Kartikeya Tandon and Avinash Sharma Click Here To Read/Download Order

Delhi High Court Grants Relief To Tesla Inc, Extends Bar on Indian Company's Use of 'Tesla' Marks In EV Market

Ayushi Shukla

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