Hero Moto Corp and Hero Electric are two separate companies and are both involved in a legal battle. 

It may be recalled that Hero Electric had sought an injunction against Hero Moto Corp from using the Trademark ‘Hero’ for its electric vehicles. The issue was referred last year to the Delhi High Court by Vijay Munjal, along with his son Naveen Munjal, who owns the largest two-wheeler company, Hero Electric. 

This legal battle was against his cousin Pawan Munjal, the Promoter and Chairman of Hero Motocorp, claiming that the company has exclusive ownership of products. In a recent ruling by the Delhi High Court, Hero Motocorp has been granted permission to use the trademark of ‘Hero’ for selling their lined-up electric vehicle:

THE RULING- HERO ELECTRIC VS HERO MOTO

The tribunal, which consisted of former Chief Justice of India Deepak Misra and the retired judges Indermeet Kaur and Indu Malhotra, observed that the Hero Moto Corp had claimed the use of ‘Hero’ for its upcoming electric vehicle lined up since 2012. The company is now close to launching its electric cars under the brand name ‘Vida- powered by Hero.’ Hero Moto Corp’s Vida brand will house all the electric vehicle initiatives. The company has even filed a patent for Vida Moto Corp, Vida, Vida electric, Vida EV, Vida Motorcycles, and Vida Scooters for its EV endeavor. 

The tribunal took into account the fact that Hero Moto Corp has spent over Rs 7,000 crores to enhance the goodwill and gain the reputation of the ‘Hero’ brand over the past ten years as compared to Rs 65 crores which the Naveen Munjal group had invested in promoting ‘Hero Electric.’ The tribunal also noted that Hero Moto Corp had made hefty investments to the tune of Rs 400 crores into their VIDA project, along with the investments made in Ather Energy, the Bengaluru-based company for its fast charging technology. Hero owns 38 percent of this company, and both firms are developing fast-charging infrastructure. 

GOOD NEWS FOR THE HERO MOTO CORP

This ruling will boost Hero Moto Corp’s confidence ahead of launching their first electric scooter shortly this year. 

Imagine if Hero Moto had to sell their electric scooters without the brand Hero or their presented dealership system. That would have been a nightmare for the world’s number 1 motorcycle brand. 

This is good news for Hero Moto Corp, but it is terrible news for Hero Electric, one of the leading electric scooter manufacturers in India. By default, most in the country mean Hero Moto Corp when referring to a Hero Vehicle. 

Even today, many think Hero Moto Coro and Hero Electric are the same company. If the arrival of the new EV rivals like Ather and Ola were not enough, they would have a new problem at hand once Hero Moto Corp launches their range of the new Hero Vida electric bikes and scooters. Hero Moto Corp was scheduled to launch their first electric scooter in the month of July 2022. But parts deficiency has forced them to delay the launch to later this year.