Contempt Of Court: Krishat Pharma Industries Company’s Account Manager, Sumit Gupta, May Go To Prison

Contempt Of Court

OpenLife Nigeria reports that a Mauritius based Pharmaceutical company Aspen Global Incorporated, alongside its Nigeria subsidiary, Aspen Pgarma Nigeria Ltd, has filed an application before a federal high court in Lagos, south west Nigeria, urging the court to committee to prison, a pharmaceutical company Krisaht Pharma Industries Ltd, Mr Sumit Gupta, the account manager, and John Ayegbeso, of the account. department for flagrantly disobeying the order of the court, until they purge themselves of the contempt.

According to an affidavit sworn to by a legal practitioner, Gilbert Obichere and filed before the court by a Lagos lawyer,Barrister Tochukwu Onuora,the deponent avers that the court made an interim order of injunction in favour of the applicant on January 18,2023.

Pursuant to that order of the court,the court made the following reliefs amongst others in favour of the applicants:

An order of interim injunction restraining KRISHAT PHARMA INDUSTRIES LTD whether acting by themselves, their servants, agents, privies or otherwise howsoever until the determination of the applicants motion for order or further order,from doing or authorizing the doing of the following acts or any of them;that is to say;

1. Manufacturing, importing, selling offering for sale, supplying (i)or inviting offers to acquire or distribute for the purpose of sale, products purporting to be analgesics preparation,antipyretic drugs and other pharmaceutical drugs bearing the name “CAFEKRIS” or any other words closely resembling the Applicant’s registered trademarks RTM 5137 for CAFENOL in class 5, as to be calculated to lead to the belief that the analgesics preparation, antipyretic drugs and other pharmaceutical drugs not of the Applicants’ manufactured are products of the Applicants.

(ii)Passing-off attempting to pass-off or causing, enabling or assisting others to pass-off products purporting to be analgesics preparation, antipyretic drugs and other pharmaceutical drugs not of the Applicants’ manufacture or merchandise as and for the goods of the Applicants by the use or in connection therewith in the course of trade the words “Cafekris” or adopting the get-up, logo, and label identical in all essential details to that of the Applicants'”CAFENOL” or any colourable imitation thereof without duly distinguishing such words, mark, get-up, logo or label from that of the Applicant or other means.

Infringing the copyright in the Artistic work of the Applicant’s Trade Mark “CAFENOL”, it’s get-up, logo, package and distinctive label.

However, notwithstanding the order of the court above, the alleged contemnors, in blatant disobedience and show of contempt to the order of court, not only refused to provide the aforementioned document contained in the order of the court above, but also refused to sign, a requisition memo attesting to this fact.

That the requisition memo specifically requested that the following document be submitted to the Applicant’s Solicitor within one week from the date of execution;

A. Sales receipt for CAFEKRIS from December 21, 2020, to Feb 14, 2023
B. Actual stock of CAFEKRIS from December 21, 2021 to February 14,2023.
C. Shipment details of CAFEKRIS to all distributors between 21st December 2021, to Feb 14th, 2023.
D. Invoices for all cafekris products distributed to all Krishat Pharma distributors.
E.Every carton, bags, products bearing the CAFEKRIS MARK manufactured from December 2021 till date.

Following the Alleged Contemnors refusal to comply with the order of the court as contained above, the Applicants wrote to the alleged contemors on the 20th of February,2023 listing the above requested document and demanded that the alleged contemnors comply with the order of the court to no avail.

The alleged contemnors to wit;
John Ayegbeso of the Accounts department and Mr,Sumit Gupta the account manager, have refused and neglected to deliver all CAFEKRIS products and all other volume of transactions or trade which has been done by the their company such as cartons, bags, shipments, order forms, invoices,bills,delivery orders and receipts, despite several opportunity availed them to purge themselves of the contempt.

Forms 48 and 49 has been issued and duly served on the Krishat Pharma Industries, its agents, servants and privies.

Consequently,Mr. Obichere urges the court in the interest of justice to grant the application.
Meanwhile,the presiding Judge,Justice Akintayo Aluko has adjourned till 23rd of April,2024 for the hearing of the application.