Buisness Line
Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publicationsTuesday, Jun 19, 2007
`Presence of former patents chief poses problem'
Mumbai June 18 Swiss drug-maker Novartis has objected to the presence of former Controller-General of Patents, Mr S. Chandrasekaran, as a Technical Member on the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB).
This was the IPAB's first hearing on the rejection of Novartis's patent application on its cancer drug, Glivec.
"The newly-appointed technical member of the appellate board is the former Controller-General of the Indian Patent Office, who was responsible for the original decision on the Glivec patent in 2006 and was acting as a party in the recent Court case reviewing the decision of the Indian Patent Office to reject our Glivec patent filing," Novartis said in a statement on Monday.
All parties to the case, including the Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) and generic drug-makers like Natco, Cipla, Hetero and Ranbaxy, will now have to respond on whether indeed Mr Chandrasekaran can be on the bench hearing this case, said a patent attorney familiar with the case, which comes up for its next hearing on July 2.
At the next hearing, the two-member bench, whose other member is IPAB Chairman, Mr Justice M.H.S. Ansari, will listen to what generic companies and the CPAA, an NGO, have to say on the composition of the bench hearing this case.
Glivec is a life-saving cancer drug that has been granted patent in nearly 40 countries - including China, Russia and Taiwan, the company said, adding that the same should be the case in India.
Novartis has come under intense local and international pressure for pursuing the patent application on Glivec.
Several patient organisations say that it would put the drug beyond the reach of patients who cannot pay.
Though Novartis gives the drug free to cancer patients in India, cancer-patient organisations question the sustainability of such free programmes, besides the impact it would have on medicines in other sectors.
http://www.blonnet.com/2007/06/19/stories/2007061902720400.htm
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