Anglo French Drugs & Industries Limited (AFDIL) has resorted to legal proceedings against the Baddi-based Fizikem Laboratories for trademark infringement of its flagship brand ‘Beplex Forte’. Fizikem Labs was engaged in the production of a similar product under the brand name ‘Belplex Forte’ using the same brand mark. The company has filed a case against Fizikem in the City Civil & Session Judge, Bangalore which has now hauled up the violator from using the trade mark and a similar sounding brand name.

Fizikem Labs has its facility at Baddi, in Himachal Pradesh where it manufactures Belplex Forte which is almost similar to Anglo French’s Beplex Forte. The violator company also adopted Anglo French’s trade mark and started selling the product at almost the same cost. While Anglo French’s Beplex Forte is priced at Rs 14.99 for 10 tablets, Fizikem’s Belplex is available at Rs 14.94 for a strip of 10. The Baddi-based company has infringed on the Anglo French’s property rights of its registered brand name Beplex Forte.

Anglo French’s Beplex Forte comes under a vitamin category and Fizikem Laboratories' Belplex Forte is a prophylactic. When Anglo French in its investigation found that Fizikem Labs was cheating the gullible public by passing of its product in the guise of a genuine product, Beplex Forte.

The assistant drugs c, Licensing Authority-cum-Controlling Authority, Baddi, and the Health & Family Welfare department have suspended the product license of Belplex Forte tablets after it received the temporary injunction order from the Bangalore City Civil and Session Judge which will now prevent Fizikem Labs from using trade name Belplex Forte, said Subbrayalu, DGM, Regulatory Affairs of Anglo French.

Currently, Anglo French’s Beplex Forte is a ranked third in ORG data in the vitamin segment after Becosules of Pfizer and Cobadex by GSK. Beplex Forte is a Rs 25 crore brand and has been registering over 10 to 15 per cent growth annually, according to sources.