In his inaugural address at the two-day Annual Intellectual Property Summit 2009 at the Ahmedabad Management Association, Justice Radhakrishnan observed that the emergence of multinational companies and the concentration of corporate powers constitute an important factor in the use and abuse of the Intellectual Property Rights.

“Today, many of these rights have become perpetual,” he said.

The complaints are often raised in a manner in which MNCs and corporate powers are in a dominant position to negotiate licenses, develop agreements, indulge in expensive litigation, and at times, influence the government and its policies.

Referring to the Turmeric and Neem patent disputes, he said that the policy makers should bear in mind the economical, social and cultural inequalities in the world.

He said unequal capacity in the domain of intellectual property might create unrest in society.

He added that these disputes triggered momentum towards protecting indigenous properties. “The concept of traditional knowledge is often pitted against existing knowledge. The ‘Neem’ incident also demonstrates the problem of exploitation of traditional knowledge,” added Justice Radhakrishnan.