Section 66 of the Patents Act, 1970
Revocation of patent in public interest
Allows the Central Government to revoke a patent by Gazette notification if the patent or the way it is used harms the public.
Official legal text
The verbatim statutory text of this provision is reproduced from the official source and checked by our legal reviewer before it is published here. Until that check is complete for this page, read the exact wording directly from the official source linked below — it is the only version that governs.
This explanation is written for clarity, not for citation. The official statutory text and any Gazette notification in force on your date govern, and they prevail over anything said here.
What this section says, in plain language
Section 66 is the widest and bluntest revocation power in the Act. It does not turn on whether the invention was new or inventive. It turns on consequences. If the Central Government is of the opinion that a patent, or the manner in which the patentee is using it, is mischievous to the State or generally prejudicial to the public, the patent can be revoked.
The Government must give the patentee an opportunity to be heard before it acts. Once it decides, the revocation is announced by a notification in the Official Gazette, and the patent is treated as revoked from that point. There is no application by a rival, no Controller hearing and no opposition procedure; this is an executive power exercised by the Government itself.
Because the power is so broad, it is used sparingly. In more than fifty years it has been invoked only a handful of times, in situations where the very existence of the monopoly was seen as damaging to national interests such as agriculture, public health or traditional knowledge. Courts expect the Government to record real reasons, to disclose the material it is relying on, and to give a genuine hearing rather than a formality.
It helps to see section 66 as the last item in a ladder of public interest tools. Section 84 lets the Controller grant a compulsory licence when the public is not reasonably served. Section 92 lets the Government trigger compulsory licensing in a national emergency or for public non-commercial use. Sections 99 to 100 let the Government simply use an invention for its own purposes. Section 66 is what remains when licensing the patent is not enough and the monopoly itself has to go.
Why this section matters
Patentees in sensitive areas such as seeds and agriculture, medicines, food, defence-adjacent technology and traditional knowledge, and their investors and licensees.
At any time after grant, for as long as the patent is in force.
A standing power in the Central Government to end a patent in the public interest, and a matching right in the patentee to be heard before that happens.
A patentee who treats a hearing notice as routine correspondence can lose the entire patent through a Gazette notification, with no Controller proceeding to fall back on.
How it works in practice
A seed patent that closes off a staple crop
Sunhaven Agritech Pvt Ltd holds an Indian patent covering a genetic marker present in most traditional varieties of a millet grown across Karnataka and Rajasthan. The claims are drafted broadly enough that seed cooperatives multiplying their own landraces appear to fall inside them. Sunhaven begins sending demand notices to state seed corporations. Farmer bodies and two agricultural universities write to the Central Government, arguing that the patent has locked up material that farmers have grown for generations and that seed supply for the coming season is at risk. The Government issues a notice to Sunhaven setting out its concerns and the material it relies on. Sunhaven appears and offers a royalty-free undertaking for smallholders. The Government is not satisfied, records that the harm lies in the existence of the monopoly and not merely its terms, and revokes the patent by notification in the Official Gazette. Sunhaven's pending infringement notices collapse, because there is no longer a patent to enforce.
Simplified illustration only. Actual legal outcomes depend on the facts.
Key points to remember
- The test is public interest and harm, not novelty or inventive step.
- Only the Central Government can exercise the power; no private party can apply under this section.
- A hearing must be offered to the patentee before revocation.
- Revocation takes effect through a notification in the Official Gazette.
- It is a rarely used power of last resort, sitting above compulsory licensing and Government use.
- The Government's order can be challenged in a writ petition if reasons or a fair hearing are missing.
Common mistakes and misunderstandings
- Assuming the patent is safe because it survived opposition and examination. Section 66 is not about the quality of the invention at all.
- Confusing this with a compulsory licence. A compulsory licence lets someone else work the patent while the patent survives; section 66 ends the patent.
- Expecting a full trial. This is an executive decision preceded by a hearing, not a court proceeding with evidence and cross-examination.
Connected provisions
- ActSection 64Revocation of patents
- ActSection 65Revocation of patent or amendment of complete specification on directions from Government in cases relating to atomic energy
- ActSection 84Compulsory licences
- ActSection 92Special provision for compulsory licences on notifications by Central Government
- ActSection 100Power of Central Government to use inventions for purposes of Government
A section tells you what the law is. A rule tells you how the Patent Office runs it from day to day. The two are kept apart here so that a reader can quote the section accurately and then look up the current rule for the practical steps.
Forms, deadlines and fees
- No statutory time limit governs when the Government may act; the power lasts as long as the patent does.
- The period to reply is fixed in the notice the Government issues, so read that notice closely and respond within the date it names.
Open the deadline calculator — and have every date confirmed against the current Rules before you rely on it.
Any official fee connected with this provision is fixed by the First Schedule to the Patents Rules, not by the provision itself. The amount depends on who the applicant is and on whether the filing is made online or on paper, so no figures are reproduced here. How Indian patent fees work.
Related judgments
This part of the page is reserved for summaries of decided cases. They are added one at a time, after review by a person qualified to confirm that the summary matches the judgment. Nothing has been cleared for this provision so far, so there is nothing to show. How case notes are prepared.
Questions people ask about Section 66
What does mischievous to the State or prejudicial to the public actually mean?
The Act does not define it, and that is deliberate. It covers situations where the monopoly itself causes real harm - for example, where a patent blocks access to a staple food or an essential medicine, ties up material that communities have always used, or is being worked in a way that damages public health or national interests. The Government must record why the harm exists and cannot rely on a vague sense of unfairness. Because the standard is open-ended, courts scrutinise the reasons closely.
Can I appeal a section 66 revocation?
There is no appeal to the Controller, and the appeal route in section 117A does not cover this order because it is not a Controller decision. The usual remedy is a writ petition in the High Court, arguing that no real hearing was given, that the material relied on was never disclosed, that no reasons were recorded, or that the decision is arbitrary. The court reviews how the decision was made rather than substituting its own view of the public interest.
Does revocation under this section affect past acts?
Revocation ends the patent from the date of the notification. It does not by itself undo royalties already paid or judgments already passed, but it removes the basis for any pending or future infringement claim. Licence agreements usually fall away for the future, so licensees should check what their contract says about a patent that is revoked, and whether royalties stop automatically or only on notice.
How is this different from revocation for non-working?
Revocation for failing to work a patent is handled by the Controller under section 85, on an application made after a compulsory licence has been in place, and it focuses on whether the invention is being made available in India. Section 66 needs no prior compulsory licence, no application by anyone, and no non-working. The Government acts on its own view of harm to the State or the public.
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