Swadeshi Jagaran Manch (SJM) — the economic wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) — on Wednesday lauded the Delhi High Court order wherein the court dismissed United States-based agro major Monsanto Technology's plea to enforce the patent for its BT cotton seeds in India.
A bench of Justices S Ravindra Bhat and Yogesh Khanna partially allowed the counter-claims of three Indian seed companies that Monsanto does not have a patent for its BT cotton seeds, a genetically modified variant which resists bollworms.
As SJM has always maintained that plant varieties and seeds could not be patented, the organisation expressed its "pleasure over the landmark judgement" .
"It has upheld the efforts made by Swadeshi Jagran Manch, intelligentsia and many other organisations of our great country to protect rights of farmers and food security of Nation by making appropriate provisions of 3(j) in Indian Patent Act (IPA)," SJM national co-convenor Ashwani Mahajan said.
Mahajan argued that the judgment be reflected in new prices for the seeds. "SJM demands that pursuant to this order, Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) modifies its earlier order, in which it had fixed the trait value at Rs 39 per packet of BT cotton seeds under the wrong impression that Monsanto possesses the patent over the seed. This implies that after the proposed amendment the price of BT cotton seed packet would be brought down from Rs 740 to Rs 700," the SJM leader said.
INDIANS WIN
- A court bench partially allowed counter-claims of three Indian seed companies that Monsanto does not have a patent for its BT cotton seeds.
