JUDGMENT :

Bharati Dangre, J.

1. This commercial appeal is filed by the appellant, Express Publications (Madurai) Private Limited, being aggrieved by the order passed by the learned Single Judge (Justice R. I. Chagla) dated 13.11.2025, thereby allowing the interim application filed by the plaintiff, Indian Express (P) Limited, seeking injunction against the defendant for acting in breach of the terms and conditions of the Memorandum of Settlement (MOS) dated 05.02.1995, recorded in the form of decree dated 16.04.1997 in Civil Suit Nos. 1246 and 1247 of 1992 by the Madras High Court as well as supplemental agreement executed between the parties.

The discord between the parties stem out of the MOS dated 05.02.1995 as well as the supplemental agreement dated 12.08.2005, entered between the plaintiff and the defendant, which received approval from the Madras High Court.

As per the plaintiff, the MOS conferred permitted user on the defendant, being a derivative of Indian Express; whereas, the defendant claimed its proprietary right over the mark and has adopted a stand that the settlement between the parties nowhere restrained it from promoting its publication outside the Five States referred to in the MOS.

Thus, the bone of contentions between the parties is the interpretation of MOS and the supplemental agreement and in the civil suit instituted by the plaintiff, it claimed right based upon the MOS and the defense adopted by the defendant also arose on account of the interpretation of the MOS. Ultimately the learned Single Judge in the impugned order, has agreed with the plaintiff in construing the permitted user of the defendant, by accepting that it was so conferred in the form of derivative of the Indian Express.

2. We have heard the learned Senior Counsel Mr. Zal Andhyarujina for the appellant (original defendant in the suit); whereas, the respondent before us (the original plaintiff in the suit), is represented by the learned Senior Counsel Mr. Darius Khambata.

In order to appreciate the findings rendered by the learned Single Judge in the impugned order dated 13.11.2025, we must briefly refer to the background facts in which the said finding is rendered.

3. Indian Express (P) Ltd. instituted a suit for infringement of trade mark and passing off claiming that it is a Company incorporated under the provision of the Companies Act, 1956 (now Companies Act, 2013) and was formerly known as Indian Express Ltd.. Indian Express Newspaper (Bombay) Ltd and now ‘Indian Express Newspaper (Mumbai) Private Ltd, claimed to be the proprietors, publishers of multi-editions of newspapers including its flagship newspaper “The Indian Express”. In the year 2008 a scheme of arrangement was filed under the Companies Act, 1956 before the High Court which was sanctioned by order dated 25.07.2008, by which the “Print Media Undertaking” of Indian Express Newspaper (Mumbai) Ltd. was demerged and transferred to and vested in the Indian Express Ltd. i.e. the plaintiff, the effective date of transfer being 05.01.2009.

On 05.01.2009 the Indian Express Newspapers (Mumbai) Ltd. entered into a Deed of Assignment of Trade Marks and its goodwill with the plaintiff, as a consequence all trademarks, patents and domain names, copyrights, trade secrets, industrial designs, product registrations and other intellectual property along with the goodwill stood transferred to and vested in the plaintiff and this covered 62 trademarks.

Apart from this, in the year 2009 the plaintiff filed an application under the Trade Marks Act, 1999, claiming prestige and goodwill amongst its readers and the public in general in India and abroad. As per the plaintiff, “The Indian Express” has been on the forefront of press freedom in the country and under the able leadership of Shri Ramnath Goenka, and series of eminent editors, outstanding journalists, it furthered the cause of freedom.

4. After the death of Shri Ramnath Goenka on 05.10.1991 in the wake of the discord between his heirs including