Copyright threat suits may become infructuous once a due diligence infringement action is filed, and Supreme Court law remains binding.

The proviso to Section 60 of the Copyright Act, 1957 is treated as defeating a groundless threat suit once the person issuing the threat commences and prosecutes with due diligence an infringement action over the same copyright. On that reasoning, the earlier threat suit is said to become infructuous. The commentary also rejects a sub silentio challenge to the later Supreme Court statement of law, noting that a Supreme Court declaration remains binding under Article 141 even if every subsidiary point is not separately discussed. The application for dismissal of the earlier suit was therefore allowed.

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Issues: Whether a prior suit for groundless threat under the Copyright Act becomes infructuous when the person making the threat subsequently commences and prosecutes an infringement action with due diligence, and whether the contrary argument based on sub silentio could displace the binding force of the Supreme Court's statement of law.

Analysis: The proviso to Section 60 of the Copyright Act, 1957 was treated as controlling the controversy. The Court held that once the person who issued the threat commences and prosecutes with due diligence an action for infringement of the same copyright, the earlier groundless threat suit cannot survive and becomes infructuous. The argument that the later infringement suit was too late, or that the earlier decisions were sub silentio because certain sub-issues were not separately discussed, was rejected. The Court held that the Supreme Court's statement in the later order, following the earlier Delhi High Court ruling, amounted to a declaration of law under Article 141 of the Constitution of India and could not be disregarded by the High Court on the ground that further arguments had not been expressly dealt with.

Conclusion: The prior groundless threat suit was held to be infructuous in view of the subsequently filed infringement suit, and the application seeking its dismissal was allowed.

Ratio Decidendi: When the person who issued a copyright threat commences and prosecutes with due diligence an infringement action, the proviso to Section 60 of the Copyright Act, 1957 removes the foundation of the earlier groundless threat suit, and a binding declaration of law by the Supreme Court cannot be ignored on a sub silentio objection.

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