KVIC has so far issued over 1,000 notices to private firms using the brand name ‘Khadi’ and infringing into its trademark.

The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) is resorting to taking strict action against anyone who ‘fraudulently’ uses its brand name ‘Khadi’ to sell their products. It has said that it will not let anyone misuse its brand name as it has a direct bearing on the livelihood of its artisans.

According to an official statement issue today, KVIC has recently sent legal notices to two firms Khadi Essentials and Khadi Global who unauthorizedly used the name ‘Khadi’ to sell cosmetic and beauty products through e-commerce websites misleading the customers. The KVIC served notices to these firms in the first week of August asking them to remove the brand name ‘Khadi’ and stop selling products with immediate effect.

The government body also asked them to cancel their domain names www.khadiessentials.com and www.khadiglobalstore.com immediately.

The statement also mentioned that the firms have been asked to remove their social media handles such as Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest by KVIC. The statement said that if the firms fail to comply with the instructions in seven days, further legal action will be initiated against the firms.

The firms have been told that the ‘Khadi’ name can be used only by authorised licensees or a franchise holder. Handwoven Khadi, incidentally, is the only fabric that can be used for India’s national flag.

“The use of a mark which completely subsumes KVIC’s trademark for identical goods will undoubtedly lead to confusion and deception in the market. Use of your mark amounts to misuse and misrepresentation of the “Khadi” trademark,” the official statement mentioned.

This is not the first time that KVIC has cracked a whip on someone misusing its trademark name ‘Khadi.’ Before these firms, Khadi had filed a legal complaint against well-known firm Fabindia for misusing its brand name. KVIC also sought damages worth 500 crore rupees from Fabindia. The case is pending in Mumbai High Court.

In another instance, KVIC lodged an FIR on July 27 against a Chandigarh based man for selling face masks under the name of ‘Khadi Face Masks.’ The official statement said that the person was misusing ‘Khadi’s’ name while selling the masks with PM Modi’s photograph printed on them.

Apart from that, in May this year, 3 Delhi-based firms were issued legal notices by KVIC for selling fake PPE kits under the brand name of Khadi, the statement said.

KVIC Chairman Vinai Kumar Saxena said that misusing the brand name ‘Khadi’ directly affects the livelihood of their artisans who make genuine handcrafted products in remote areas.

He said, “KVIC will take stern action against any individual or firm misusing the brand name Khadi. This is to safeguard the interest of Khadi artisans and prevent the sale of any spurious product in the name of Khadi.”

According to the statement, KVIC has so far issued over 1,000 notices to private firms using the brand name ‘Khadi’ and infringing into its trademark.