Bombay High Court restrains cab operators from using ‘Jio’ trademark

In a significant trademark protection ruling, the Bombay High Court has restrained a group of cab operators from using the ‘Jio’ trademark owned by Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) for taxi services offered under the domain name www.jiocabs.com.

The interim order was passed by Justice Somasekhar Sundaresan on October 7, 2025, in response to a suit filed by RIL alleging trademark infringement and passing off.

“The continued usage of a well-known and protected brand name would indeed cause grave injury,” Justice Sundaresan observed, while granting ad-interim relief in favour of the conglomerate. He noted that RIL had made out a strong prima facie case for urgent intervention, especially given the defendants’ conduct and the deceptive similarity of the impugned marks to RIL’s registered trademarks.

The court was informed that the defendants, Asif Ahmed (registrant of the domain), Usman (proprietor of Doon Taxi Service), and P.D.R. Solutions LLC (domain registrar), were operating taxi services in Dehradun and Delhi under the name “Jiocabs”, and had used logos and artwork closely resembling RIL’s original artistic works. The website also listed Mumbai as a service location.

Justice Sundaresan noted that although the defendants had changed their business name following legal notice, the domain www.jiocabs.com remained active. “Even the balance of convenience would be in favour of grant of the ad-interim relief,” he said.

The court’s order restrains the defendants and any associated entities from using the ‘Jio’ name, mark, or any deceptively similar artwork in connection with taxi services or any other goods or services.

The protection extends to RIL’s trademarks registered under multiple classes, including Class 9 (digital goods), Class 38 (telecommunications), and Class 39 (transport and travel services).

The judge also referenced a previous 2021 order of the Bombay High Court which had recognised ‘Jio’ as a well-known trademark, with RIL holding 14 separate registrations and facing misuse across at least 11 domain names.

The matter is scheduled for further hearing on November 28, 2025. The defendants have been given four weeks to file their reply.