Judgement of KSRTC case

After a long trademark fight between the two states of the country namely Karnataka
and Kerala. Where Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation filed a case against
the other party which was Kerala State Road Transport Corporation for using the
abbreviation “KSRTC”, which is logically applicable as the short form for both the
parties but Karnataka Road Transportation Corporation registered it on its own name
and Kerala Road Transport Corporation fought back for the name.
The Kerala State Road Transport Agency claims to have legal ownership of the
trademarked term KSRTC, along with the name Ana Vandi and the two elephants
affiliated with the state-run transport corporation, following a seven-year legal
struggle with neighbouring state Karnataka. Kerala claims that the Controller General
of Patents, Designs, and Trade Marks, a division of the Ministry of Commerce and
Industry, authorised its claim on June 2. With this filing, Kerala SRTC has been given
sole custody of the trademark and is now permitted to use the mark KSRTC to
denote the registration on all of its buses (R).
There has been a conflict between Kerala and Karnataka for a very long time.
Karnataka had obtained the trademark for "KSRTC" and a Gandaberunda icon in
2014. (two-headed mythical bird). Kerala was then requested by Karnataka to stop
using the same name in a letter. Kerala then submitted an application to the
Registrar of Trade Marks for the trademark.

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According to Kerala's Transport Minister Antony Raju, only the Kerala SRTC is now
permitted to use the phrase "Ana Vandi." "The lives of the people in the state are
entwined with the history of KSRTC. It is more than just a transportation service; it
has also left a legacy of public transportation in our cultural life, especially in
literature and motion pictures "added the minister.

"It is reported that the trademark registry has now ruled that Karnataka should not
use the word as Kerala used the word KSRTC before. But we have yet to officially
come to terms with what is in this judgment, and once it is made available, the state
of Karnataka will decide on the next stand and what the legal fight will be. Ours is a
federal system. This federal system states that a state must maintain a friendly
relationship with another state without any conflict," Savadi said.

It is sad that this topic has been "unnecessarily awakened," Savadi continued. "This
is because this kind of name or trademark has an impact on the sales and
profitability of private enterprises. Governmental bodies, however, are not. The
people's assistance here is crucial. In the area of mutual transportation, Karnataka or
Kerala are advancing the needs and services of the general public without focusing
on revenue or rivalry. Therefore, no state should elevate this issue to one of prestige.
Kerala cannot celebrate this in any way. We should all stop raising disagreements in
one another's states because doing so just serves to exacerbate already existing
disagreements. In the best interests of the nation, maintaining positive relations
between the states and the state is crucial, he said in a statement.
Calling about the way the court proceeded we can see that court has seen that
although Karnataka State Road Transportation Corporation got the trademark
registered but Kerala State Road Transportation Corporation was the one who
initially used it. Finally, in a trademark dispute over the abbreviation KSRTC, which
formerly stood for both the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation and the
Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation, Kerala prevailed over Karnataka in
June 2021. The Kerala State Road Transport Corporation will temporarily use this
moniker as a result of the TM Registrar's decision ruling in Kerala's favour. The
acronym, along with the moniker "Aanavandi," which means "elephant cart" and has
historically been connected to only Kerala and not Karnataka or even the two states
in question, had great significance.

The Trade Marks Act of 1999 states that there are no limitations on registering an
acronym as a trademark. The odds of registering that trademark would appear to be
reasonable even though utilising any abbreviation, like in this example, has gained a
secondary meaning that may be significant to the state in any way, such as historical
significance or great reputation or goodwill.

The registration of such an acronym would, however, result in related legal

complications concerning someone who also uses that specific acronym or
abbreviation, as was seen in the KSRTC case.

The "First user rule" is the theory on which the TM Registrar in this specific case has
based. By presenting photographs of ancient buses, bus terminals, pages from the
memoirs of prior transport ministers, and associated reports of their transportation
services, the state of Kerala was successful in demonstrating the use of the acronym
and its mark as early as 1965.

Ironically, a sequence from the 1969 Malayalam movie "Kannur Deluxe," which has
led to numerous headlines claiming that a movie helped the state of Kerala win this
battle, was submitted. A Kerala SRTC bus was seen travelling between the cities of
Kannur and Thiruvananthapuram in the scenario. Karnataka became a subsequent
user of this specific acronym/mark since, as was already noted, it began using it over
ten years later, in 1973.

In addition to the aforementioned justification, it is necessary to examine the

significance of the idea of secondary meaning. While the abbreviation "KSRTC" may
not stand out on its own, it is important to notice that it has through time developed a
secondary connotation among the states. It has been thought about that given the
length of time and frequency of use, it is possible that KSRTC stands for a variety of
meanings. In this instance, the Kerala SRTC was given preference over the
Karnataka SRTC and given the moniker "Aanavandi." As seen in this example, it is
possible to conclude that the acronyms or marks have a distinct secondary meaning
for a certain state.

IS KARNATAKA BARRED FROM USING KSRTC?

It is important to note that because Karnataka is not expressly prohibited from using
the acronym, Kerala SRTC would need to file a lawsuit in order to prevent Karnataka
from using the abbreviation "KSRTC".
The coexistence of trademarks like the ones in question is not expressly prohibited
by any law. Meeting the requirements outlined in Sections 9 and 12 of the Trade
Marks Act, 1999, which are described in the law as,  "Registration in the case of
honest concurrent use, etc. - In the case of honest concurrent use or of other special
circumstances which in the opinion of the Registrar, make it proper so to do, he may
permit the registration by more than one proprietor of the trade marks which are
identical or similar (whether any such trade mark is already registered or not) in
respect of the same or similar goods or services, subject to such conditions and
limitations, if any, as the Registrar may think fit to impose."

Therefore, if both parties are considered to have rights over this acronym, as has
been the case for the years that KSRTC has been used by both state parties, then
the amicable use of the acronym/mark/abbreviations may continue quietly and
without interruption.

Today, Kerala is known by the abbreviation KSRTC, which stands for Kerala State
Road Transport Corporation, and by the moniker Aanavandi (elephant cart). The
emblem published a law allowing the designation KSRTC, which is typically used for
street cars. Kerala now uses the Transport Corporation of Kerala and Karnataka the
most frequently. Founded in 1938 and formerly known as the Travancore State
Department of Transport, Kerala State Road Transport Corporation is one of the
oldest government-run organisations in India that manages public street delivery
services. It wasn't reorganised until 1965 and has since changed its name to State
Road Transport Corporation. Originally known as the Mysore Government Road
Transport Department, the nation-State Road Transport Corporation was founded in
1948 and changed its name to the Karnataka Transport Corporation in 1973.

Kerala finally got the trademark for the acronym KSRTC with the aid of Trademark
Registars' first user rule. The first person to use or register a trademark is considered
the first user under the law. In this instance, Kerala was the first to utilise the
abbreviation KSRTC and provided convincing evidence in the form of outdated
buses, bus garages, pages from the journals of prior transport ministers, and
information pertaining to their transportation services. Additionally, it's critical to
examine the definition of the phrase secondary meaning because, despite the fact
that the acronym KSRTC is indistinguishable in and of itself, it should be noted that it
has over time acquired secondary meaning that differs from what was originally
intended. In this instance, Kerala SRTC and the nickname Aanavandi took
precedence over Karnataka SRTC. As can be seen in this example, acronyms and
characters have additional meanings depending on the state.

Finally, Kerala State Road Transport Corporation was given the acronym KSRTC
and the moniker "Aanavandi" by the Trademark Registry in compliance with the
Trademarks Act, 1999.