The Hindu Business Line : Glivec case: More time sought on appellate board composition

Mumbai, Sept 5 The Centre has asked the Supreme Court for more time to come up with its suggestion on the composition of the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB), with regard to having a technical member on the Board.

The IPAB composition is significant, as it will look into the rejection of Novartis’ patent application on its cancer drug Glivec. But the IPAB profile had caused Novartis some heart-burn in the past, as the technical member on the IPAB was the former patent controller, Mr S. Chandrasekaran, under whom Novartis’ patent application on Glivec had been rejected in the first place, in 2006.

Earlier this week, the Supreme Court had told the Centre that the IPAB should have an expert member and asked the Centre to respond with its suggestion on the Board composition.

The next hearing on the issue is slated for September 11, a lawyer handling the issue told Business Line.

Two-member bench

Concern over the composition of the IPAB was raised by Novartis at the Madras High Court last year. And in its ruling in November, the Madras High Court agreed to the Government’s suggestion that a two-member Bench comprising the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman of the IPAB could look into the rejection of Novartis’ patent application.

The IPAB’s then Chairman was Mr Justice M.H.S. Ansari and the Vice-Chairman was Mr Z.S. Negi.

Unhappy with that development, the Hyderabad-based drug-maker Natco (one of the parties fighting the patent case on Glivec) then filed a special leave petition at the Supreme Court earlier this year.

Currently, Mr Negi is the Chairman of IPAB and there is no Vice-Chairman, which is why the appointment of the technical member is important, the lawyer explained.

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