Supreme Court Dismissed Bayer’s Appeal

The Supreme Court of India on 1 December 2010 dismissed German pharmaceutical firm Bayer AGs attempt to block Indian drug regulator from allowing Mumbai-based Cipla Ltd to launch a low-cost version of its patented cancer medicine. In case the court's decision was in favour of Bayer, it would have rendered its support to patent linkage. Patent linkage is a provision that links marketing approval for introduction of a low-cost drug to the patent status of its original product. Global drug makers have pressed for such linkage to better protect their patented medicines. However the patent linkage is opposed by local drug makers who fear that adoption of patent linkage would delay the launch of lowcost medicines as well as increase healthcare costs for the public.

In February 2010, the Delhi High Court had declined an appeal by Bayer to stop drug controller general of India (DCGI) from giving marketing approval for its patented medicine Nexavar to Cipla.