JUDGMENT :

R.F. Nariman, J.

Leave granted.

1. The respondent No.4 is a corporation incorporated under the laws of the United States of America. It is an ultimate subsidiary of Pernord Ricard S.A., which is engaged in the business of manufacturing and marketing a variety of alcoholic beverages worldwide. It claims that it has coined and adopted the trademark ‘BLENDERS PRIDE’ through its licensee M/s Seagram Company Limited in the year 1973. According to respondent No.4, on account of extensive sales and marketing worldwide, the trademark ‘BLENDERS PRIDE’ has come to acquire a tremendous reputation in various countries including India. In order to secure its proprietary rights in the said trademark, respondent No.4 had applied for and was granted registration of the said trademark in more than 50 countries and has been selling ‘BLENDERS PRIDE’ whisky in India through its licensee Seagram India Private Limited since 1995. It has also applied for registration of the trademark ‘BLENDERS PRIDE’ under two applications in class 33 which are pending registration. The appellant’s application for registration of an identical trademark ‘BLENDERS PRIDE’ was advertised in the Trademarks Journal M