Semaglutide Patent War: After Dr Reddy's Blow, Novo Nordisk Moves Delhi HC Against Sun Pharma

New Delhi: In an escalation of India's unfolding GLP-1 patent war, Novo Nordisk has approached the Delhi High Court to restrain Sun Pharmaceutical from dealing, directly or indirectly, in semaglutide, the core molecule powering its global blockbuster Ozempic. The company has sought a restraint on Sun Pharma from handling either the API or any product derived from it.

The fresh plea lands barely days after the High Court delivered a major setback to Novo Nordisk in its fight against Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories (DRL).

Earlier, the Medical Dialogues team reported that the Delhi High Court refused to grant Danish innovator Novo Nordisk an interim injunction to restrain Dr. Reddy's Laboratories from manufacturing Semaglutide in India. The High Court permitted Dr. Reddy’s to continue manufacturing Semaglutide in India but barred domestic sale until the patent expires. It directed:

“The Defendants will not sell the impugned drugs in India until the Suit Patent/IN’697 has expired; however, the Defendants shall maintain an account of the drugs manufactured and exports carried out by them for the entire period from the commencement of manufacture until the expiry of the Suit Patent/IN’697 for the purposes of the trial.”

Now, in continuation, on Tuesday, the new suit against Sun Pharma came up before Justice Tejas Karia, the Indian Express reported.

Novo Nordisk’s lawyer asked the court,

"[in single judge’s order from December 2]… to balance equities, the court maintained the status quo — that is, whatever you’re doing, the defendant (DRL) in that case was permitted to do [manufacture and export], whatever they were not doing [sell in India], they were asked to hold on… I’m only requesting that [for Sun Pharma as well]. I’m not challenging the findings [of the December 2 verdict in this suit]…”

The counsel added,

“The suit is pending… we’re in the process of challenging it [the December 2 verdict].”

The courtroom dispute comes at a time when Sun Pharma has openly expressed its ambitions in the GLP-1 space. During its November earnings call, the company described the market as “exciting” and said it intended to enter “whenever the first opportunity is available”.

Justice Karia noted the overlap with the earlier Dr. Reddy's Laboratories case and transferred the matter for hearing by the same court of Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora.

At the heart of the dispute are two key Indian patents held by Novo Nordisk over semaglutide:

Patent No. 275964 — covering the core composition of semaglutide, filed in 2006 and expired in September 2024.

Patent No. 262697 — covering specific formulations and delivery-device enhancements, valid until March 2026.

With the primary patent having lapsed last year, the field has opened for generic competition and the High Court’s favorable stance toward Dr. Reddy's Laboratories is being seen as a green light for other domestic contenders, including Mankind Pharma, Cipla, and Sun Pharma, all of whom are exploring GLP-1 launches in India.

Semaglutide is a glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonist used to improve glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus, treat obesity, and reduce the risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in selected adults.

GLP-1 is a physiological hormone that promotes glycemic control via several different mechanisms, including insulin secretion, slowing gastric emptying, and reducing postprandial glucagon secretion. The homeostasis of glucose is dependent on hormones such as insulin and amylin, which are secreted by the beta cells of the pancreas. Semaglutide is 94% similar to human GLP-1. Analogs of this hormone, such as semaglutide, stimulate the synthesis of insulin by stimulating pancreatic islet cells and reducing glucagon secretion. They directly bind with selectivity to the GLP-1 receptor, causing various beneficial downstream effects that reduce blood glucose in a glucose-dependent fashion.