39. Special conditions for avoidance of conditions for maintaining resale prices.

(1) Without prejudice to the provisions of this Act with respect to registration and to any of the powers of the Commission or of the Central Government under this Act, any term or condition of a contract for the sale of goods by a person to a wholesaler or retailer or any agreement between a person and a wholesaler or retailer relating to such sale shall be void insofar as it purports to establish or provide for the establishment of minimum prices to be charged on the resale of goods in India.

(2) After the commencement of this Act, no supplier of goods whether directly or through any person or association of persons acting on his behalf shall notify to dealers or otherwise publish on or in relation to any goods, a price stated or calculated to be understood as the minimum price which may be charged on the resale of the goods in India.

(3) This section shall apply to patented articles (including articles made by a patented process and articles made under any trade mark) as it applies to other goods and notice of any term or condition which is void by virtue of this section or which would be so void if included in a contract of sale or agreement relating to the sale of such article shall be of no effect for the purpose of limiting the right of a dealer to dispose of that article without infringement of the patent or trade mark, as the case may be :

Provided that nothing in this section shall affect the validity as between the parties and their successors, of any term or condition of a licence granted by the proprietor of a patent or trade mark or by a licensee of patent or ¹[trade mark or of any assignment of a patent or trade mark], so far as it regulates the prices at which articles produced or processed by the licensee or the assignee may be sold by him.

Explanation : In this section and in section 40, the term “supplier”, in relation to supply of any goods, means a person who supplies goods to any person for the ultimate purpose of resale and includes a wholesaler, and the term “dealer” includes a supplier and a retailer.

Note:

1.   Substituted for the words "trade marks by a licence under any such licence" by Act No. 30 of 1984, w.e.f. 1st. August, 1984.