Madras High Court refuses interim aid in TVK flag dispute case

The Madras High Court on Monday (August 18, 2025) refused to grant interim aid in a civil go well with filed towards Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) and its president, C. Joseph Vijay for having allegedly used a “deceptively” related color mixture in his celebration flag as that of Thondai Mandala Saandror Dharma Paribalana Sabai, a registered belief based mostly in Mylapore, Chennai.

Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy rejected an software filed by the trustee G.B. Pachaiyappan to restrain TVK and its chief from utilizing the celebration flag. The choose nevertheless left open all points to be determined in the course of the ultimate listening to of a civil go well with filed collectively by the belief in addition to its trustee alleging infringement of its registered trademark with an identical color mixture.

Earlier, senior counsel Vijay Narayan, assisted by Okay. Gowtham Kumar, argued on behalf of TVK that the difficulty of trademark infringement wouldn’t come up in any respect within the case of a political celebration flag. TVK doesn’t use the flag in the midst of any commerce. Therefore, the very premise for the submitting of the moment civil go well with was flawed and it was a fallacious understanding of the Trademarks Act of 1999, he stated.

Stating that TVK’s flag had been conceived and adopted solely as a medium of political expression, he stated, the flag was adopted by the celebration on August 22, 2024 after intensive deliberations between the celebration founders, artists and ideologues. “The design of the flag will not be merely decorative or incidental, it’s a deeply intentional and ideologically expressive creation rooted in Tamil historical past, tradition, and political symbolism,” he added.

In his counter affidavit, TVK’s normal secretary Anand alias N. Bussy Anand stated, the highest and backside bands of the flag have been rendered in a deep maroon paying homage to the darkish blood like color – pink. “Traditionally, this color represents revolution, self-discipline, accountability, crucial thought, and depth of motion. Maroon can also be visually putting, attracting consideration and evoking seriousness and management,” he added.

According to him, the yellow band within the centre of the flag represents pleasure, hope, aspiration, psychological readability, enthusiasm, power and reminiscence. “This symbolizes the decided ahead march towards targets with positivity and resolve. At the guts of the flag is the Vaagai flower, traditionally a logo of victory,” Mr. Anand stated and asserted the celebration flag had nothing to do with the plaintiff’s trademark.

“Literature recounts kings and warriors sporting the Vaagai flower upon returning victorious from battle. In some traditions, warriors put on the Vaagai flower even earlier than setting out for the battle, as a declaration of assured triumph of the Tamil folks… Thus, the flag of the TVK will not be a mere mixture of colors and shapes, however a rigorously curated expression meant to encourage unity, cultural pleasure, historic continuity, social dedication, and democratic aspiration,” the counter affidavit learn.