Hearings against farmers are scheduled for April 26 at commercial court in Gujarat | Photo from Twitter/Lay's India

PepsiCo sued Gujarati farmers for 'infringing its right' by growing the potato variety used in its Lay's chips.

Over 190 activists on Wednesday urged the Centre to ask PepsiCo India to withdraw its "false" cases against Gujarat farmers for allegedly illegally growing a particular variety of potatoes "registered" by the company.

In a letter to the Ministry of Agriculture, 194 signatories have sought financial aid and protection of rights of farmers who have been sued for growing and selling a potato variety called FC-5 potato, for which PepsiCo India Holdings claimed to have obtained "exclusive rights in the country in 2016".

"This is to bring to your urgent notice our serious concerns and facts around legal suits that are going against farmers on the matter of plant varietal rights. These are being filed by PepsiCo, a US multinational company against potato farmers in Gujarat, with regard to alleged infringement of its rights under Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights (PPVFR) Act 2001.

"For us, this is a matter of concern with regard to this set of farmers who have been sued and intimidated, as well as others who could be similarly bullied by seed and food corporations through vexatious litigation in the assertion of plant breeder rights," the letter said.

It asked the ministry to write to PepsiCo India Holdings, asking it to withdraw its "false and untenable cases" against the farmers.

The signatories, including leaders and members of farmers' unions, food activists, lawyers, NGOs, agricultural journalists and others have written to the ministry saying that farmers have the right to grow and sell a protected variety of seed and this right was required to be protected.

Kavitha Kurungati, an activist from volunteer group ASHA (Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture), said the letter seeks that the ministry should put out a public statement explaining the farmers' rights as enshrined in the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights (PPVFR) Act 2001 and also send it to the courts in Ahmedabad where the farmers are being sued.

"Farmers are very well within the right to produce and sell protected variety of seeds and PepsiCo cannot claim its intellectual property right on it. We have written to the ministry today as the hearings are coming up day after tomorrow," Kavitha said.

Hearings against the farmers are scheduled for April 26 at a commercial court in Gujarat which had, on the last hearing, issued an ex-parte interim injunction order against the farmers.

The activists also sought financial assistance to the farmers from the government.

"Provide from the National Gene Fund the costs of legal suits that the farmers are having to face, until the time that the cases are withdrawn by PepsiCo. Issue a notification that no company can trespass into a farmer's field without due intimation of the local district agriculture office and the farmer's prior informed consent," it said.