Farmers’ rights activist Kavitha Kuruganti has described the Supreme Court’s recent judgment in the long-running PepsiCo-potato farmers case as “deeply disappointing”, arguing that while the verdict recognises farmers’ legal rights over protected seed varieties, it does not adequately protect those rights in practice.
The case concerns PepsiCo India Holdings’ earlier legal action against potato farmers in Gujarat over alleged infringement of intellectual property rights. Kuruganti had challenged the company’s plant variety registration and sought its cancellation under the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights (PPV&FR) Act, 2001.
According to Kuruganti, the Supreme Court bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice K Vinod Chandran upheld the existence of farmers’ rights under Section 39(1)(iv) of the law, which allows farmers to save, use, sow, resow, exchange, share or sell farm produce, including seed of protected varieties, subject to certain conditions.
However, she said the court did not accept her argument that using intellectual property rights to sue farmers should be treated as a public-interest violation warranting cancellation of PepsiCo’s plant variety registration.
“The judgement upheld farmers’ rights in letter but not in spirit,” Kuruganti said, adding that farmers were effectively being asked to establish their rights in court despite those rights being clearly provided under the law.
Dispute dates back to 2018
The dispute began in 2018 and 2019, when PepsiCo India Holdings sued at least nine potato farmers in Gujarat, alleging infringement of its rights over a registered potato variety. The company sought damages of more than Rs 1 crore from each farmer.
The cases triggered protests from farmers’ groups and activists. Following a nationwide campaign, PepsiCo withdrew all the cases unconditionally in May 2019.
Kuruganti subsequently filed an application seeking cancellation of PepsiCo’s plant variety registration on several grounds, including the argument that its actions against farmers violated public interest.
In December 2021, the relevant authority revoked PepsiCo’s registration. The company challenged the decision before the Delhi High Court. A Single Judge upheld the revocation in 2023 on two grounds, but a Division Bench of the High Court reversed that decision in January 2024.
Kuruganti then approached the Supreme Court through a Special Leave Petition. The matter was heard by the two-judge bench on August 5, 2026. Kuruganti said the case highlights the difference between India’s plant variety protection law and conventional patent laws. She argued that the PPV&FR Act was specifically designed to balance intellectual property protection with farmers’ rights.
She also said it was significant that during the Supreme Court hearing, PepsiCo stated that farmers would be allowed to exercise their rights under Section 39(1)(iv). Kuruganti said she would continue to monitor the implementation of farmers’ seed rights.