HC permits puja pandal to keep Hogwarts

Rowling and media partner Warner Brothers had filed a copyright violation case before Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul seeking injunction and monetary compensation against the organiser for 8220;clear violation8221; of her intellectual property rights over her characters.

The court8217;s decision came after the pooja organiser gave a written undertaking before the Bench that they would in future use the subjects and symbols of her stories only after receiving her prior explicit permission.

Allowing the organisers to use Potter replicas till October 26 8212;the last day of the festivities 8212; Justice Kaul ordered the 8220;defendants organisers in future to model their pandals on any of the subject matter only with the leave and liberty of the plaintiff Rowling8221;.

Refusing to impose compensation, the court termed the organiser8217;s use of Potter characters in Durga festival as a 8220;non-profit making enterprise8221; without any aim to derive financial mileage.

However, this did not stop the Bench from passing an observation in a lighter vein that nowadays 8220;instead of making Durga murties, people use Harry Potter8221;.

Reacting to the order, counsel for the pooja organisers, D K Nag told The Indian Express: 8220;There is no profit involved for us. We only meant to make the festivities more colourful for children.8221;