Indian Says His Grandpa Invented Coke Formula

An aspiring politician here has begun his battle to establish his grandfather as the real inventor of the real thing called Coca-Cola.

Raj Gopal Bhandari, claiming that his grandfather Mansukh Nath was the creator of the Coke formula and not American pharmacist John Styth Pemberton of Atlanta, plans to file a case in an Indian court latest by June.

If however the company makes a legal move by that time, that would be even better. It was in July 1997 that the matter was brought to their notice by my counsel but they havent hauled me yet to any court, Bhandari said. In November 1996, Bhandari had sent a letter to the former Coca-Cola CEO, late Roberto Goizueta, but that drew only a formal reply.

 

It appears that the powerful US multinational has chosen to view this latest development as yet another claimant to the secret Coke formula in the long history of similar claims. But for Bhandari it is a mission to install his grandfather as the creator of the worlds most successful non-alcoholic drink.

In his reply to Bhandaris counsels letter of July 7, 1997, W Dexter Brooks, senior staff counsel of The Coca-Cola Company, wrote, For over 90 years we have been contacted or approached by various parties that claim they either know, have knowledge of, or have seen the original formula for Coca-Cola.

We have never found any evidence or substance in such claims. This has resulted in our company adopting a firm company policy of not inspecting, discussing or engaging in correspondence about the real formula for Coca-Cola which still remains today as one of the most revered `trade secrets in the world, he said.

But Bhandari, who unsuccessfully contested state legislature election twice from the Darjeeling constituency in 1987 as a candidate of the Rashtriya Samajwadi Congress and again in 1991 for the Bharatiya Janata Party ticket, and his lawyer Naresh Balodia, feel that their stand is basically different on more than one count.

Our fight is not over whether Mansukh Nath had the possession of the formula, but its over the invention of the formula. Our fight is to establish it was he, Rajgopals grandfather, who was the inventor. He came out with the formula in 1883 and not John Pemberton of Atlanta who has been officially recognised to have done so three years later, Bhandari said.

Bhandari chanced upon an old box in his three-room house in Calcuttas Dharamtalla Street which contained a sheaf of yellowed papers. Among them were some notes written in Urduwhich spoke of a formula for a new cola. (IANS)

In November, 1883 Mansukh Nath had written to a certain Akhtar Singh Oberoi You will happy to know that this formula of mine has been selected for the exhibition.

Bhandari went through newspapers of that time and found that The Friend of India and Statesman of December 4, 1883, reported the launch of the new drink in an exhibition in Calcutta that was inaugurated by a member of the British royalty.

Bhandari, who has done a lot of groundwork and has in his possession today an inventory of micro-films, copies and grayed old documents, says that the most important points are the papers and correspondence of his grandfather that are with him. He claimed these clearly show that he had invented a new soft drink.

Bhandari said that he himself has made a soft drink from his grandfathers formula and it tastes exactly like Coca-Cola which, he points out, does not always taste the same. He is prepared to demonstrate it at any forum.

Mansukh Nath was a partner in Rose and Thistle, one of the major soft drink companies in the world in its times. It did business in many countries, including Russia and Canada. So it was more natural for him to come out with a new potion than Pemberton who by profession was a pharmacist, Bhandari claims.

Another strong point in favour of their contention is that the formula described in Mansukh Naths handwritten notes and the one mentioned in Practical Recipes, a publication of W J Bush and Company for the aerated water trade, are similar. Bush later became his partner in Rose & Thistle. The publication was abruptly withdrawn in 1916 after it had run into its eighth edition.

Bhandaris counsel Balodia said the issue is sensitive, and a lot of things, from the jurisdiction of the court where the case is to be filed to the possible response of the other party, have to be taken into account.