Mohak Mangal seeks to merge IP suits filed by ANI

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has referred a plea filed by YouTuber Mohak Mangal to its Intellectual Property Division (IPD), seeking the transfer and consolidation of legal proceedings initiated by news agency ANI over alleged intellectual property infringement.

As per the report, the matter, titled Mohak Mangal vs ANI & Ors, came up before Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani on Monday. Observing that the dispute concerns the use of ANI’s intellectual property, the Court directed that the plea for transfer and consolidation be placed before the appropriate IPD bench.

“It transpires that the matter relates to use of intellectual property of ANI. Rule 26 of IPD Rules provides that a petition seeking consolidation or transfer may be decided by coordinate bench in the IP Division. Since transfer and consolidation are two sides of the same coin and conflicting rulings could be discordant, list the matter before the concerned IPD bench,” the Court stated.

As per the report, ANI has filed two separate legal actions against Mangal. The first is a defamation suit in the High Court, where the agency has objected to statements made in one of Mangal’s videos. Specifically, it has challenged the YouTuber’s allegation that ANI’s copyright strikes and licensing fee demands amounted to extortion. On May 29, Mangal agreed to take down the contested references from the video in question.

The second case is a copyright and trademark infringement suit currently pending before a district court. ANI has alleged that Mangal used and reproduced ten of its news videos without authorisation and also displayed its logo without permission. The agency is seeking a permanent and mandatory injunction, along with Rs 50 lakh in damages, citing copyright infringement, piracy, plagiarism, and unjust enrichment.The next hearing is scheduled for July 25.

Appearing for Mangal, Senior Advocate Diya Kapur, along with advocates Nakul Gandhi, Mujeeb, and Tanish Gupta, argued that the content usage was protected under the doctrine of fair use.

On behalf of ANI, Advocate Sidhant Kumar submitted that the IP Division was already seized of related issues in the dispute and noted that interim injunctions had been granted, according to the report.