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A day after India launched a wave of missile strikes targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK), six individuals and entities rushed to file trademark applications for “Operation Sindoor” — the codename for the historic military operation. One of the applications has since been withdrawn.
Among the applicants were Mumbai-based Mukesh Chetram Agrawal, retired Group Captain Kamal Singh Oberh, Delhi-based lawyer Alok Kothari, Jayaraj T, and Uttam. Each sought to register the name “Operation Sindoor” under trademark Class 41, which pertains to services including education, entertainment, film and web series production, cultural activities, and language training.
Claim on Government-Released Logo of Operation Sindoor
In addition to seeking rights over the name, both Mr. Agrawal and Mr. Jayaraj also staked a claim on the official logo of Operation Sindoor, which had been publicly released by the Indian government on Wednesday. Their applications were therefore tagged with the Vienna Codification, a classification system used for trademarks involving visual elements such as logos or graphical designs, in accordance with the Vienna Agreement.
Corporate heavyweight Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) also submitted a trademark application for “Operation Sindoor” but later retracted it. In a formal statement, the company clarified that the filing had been made “inadvertently by a junior person without authorisation.”
Trademark Law and Government’s Right to Object
An intellectual property lawyer practicing at the Delhi High Court told reporters that the Trademark Act does not prohibit private individuals or companies from applying for trademarks related to government operations.
“It’s always a race – whoever files first has the advantage,” the lawyer explained.
However, legal provisions exist for government intervention. The Government of India can oppose such filings under Section 9(1)(A) of the Trademarks Act, which allows objections against trademarks that could be misleading or contrary to public interest.
Although the process of trademark registration in India can take more than a year, applicants have the option to expedite their application by paying a fee of ₹40,000.
Operation Sindoor: Precision Strikes and Retaliation
The trademark frenzy follows India’s unprecedented military response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, Anantnag district of Jammu & Kashmir. That attack killed 26 people — 25 Indians and one Nepali citizen.
In retaliation, the Indian armed forces executed 24 precision missile strikes on nine high-value terror targets across Pakistan and PoK early Wednesday. Key targets included Muridke and Bahawalpur — known bastions of terror outfits Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM).
On Thursday, the Defence Ministry revealed that Pakistan had attempted a counteroffensive the previous night, targeting multiple military sites in 15 cities across northern and western India using drones and missiles. However, Indian forces successfully thwarted these attempts and also destroyed a Pakistani air defence installation in Lahore, the ministry added.
Also Read: Reliance Withdraws ‘Operation Sindoor’ Trademark Application, Calls It An Inadvertent Error
