DailyO reported:

Indian judiciary needs to keep a tight check on big pharmas

Legal battles make headlines when they end in a landmark judgment. Some judgments prove to be milestones due to their long-term impact on people and their lives.

Five years ago on April 1, the Supreme Court had delivered such a judgment in a patent case involving a costly cancer drug. The court had rejected the patent application of Swiss pharmaceutical company, Novartis, for an upgraded version of cancer drug Glivec.

This allowed Indian companies to make cheaper versions of the same drug. Novartis was trying to extend its patent coverage by claiming some features which the court ruled were not novel or innovative. Big companies adopt the tactics known as “evergreening” of patents to continue selling their patented products much after the original patent expires.