The Indian Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday has slammed Patanjali Ayurved, which is co-owned by yoga guru Ramdev, over 'misleading' advertisements and banned the company from advertising any product related to diseases or other medical conditions.
The SC has said that the "entire country is being taken for a ride" through such misleading advertisements, the Outlook India reported.
The SC has also served a contempt notice to Ramdev-owned Patanjali Ayurved and its managing director Acharya Balakrishna for issuing misleading advertisements about health cures in violation of an earlier order.
During the hearing of a writ petition filed by the Indian Medical Association (IMA), the bench, comprising Justice Hima Kholi and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah, initially contemplated a blanket ban on all product advertisements, the Mint reported. However, after considering Patanjali's extensive product range and the potential impact on business interests, the court restricted the curbs on the advertisement of products related to diseases and ailments under the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act 1954 for the time being.
During the hearing, Justices Hima Kohli and A. Amanullah criticized Patanjali Ayurved for releasing advertisements despite previous court orders issued last year.
The SC was hearing the Indian Medical Association's petition seeking action against Baba Ramdev and Patanjali Ayurved for defaming evidence-based medicine.
With more than 350,000 members, the IMA is the largest association of doctors practising evidence-based medicine.
This is not the first time the Supreme Court has raised objections regarding Patanjali Ayurved's advertisements.
In November, the court ordered Patanjali Ayurved to stop all misleading advertisements and warned that any false or misleading claims would result in a IRs 10 million penalty for each such claim. Later, in January, the company assured the Supreme Court that it would not violate any laws related to its advertising.
The Court also asked the Union Government what action has been taken from its end under the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act 1954 in respect of the advertisements of Patanjali. The court, on August 23, 2022, had issued notices to the Union Health Ministry, Ministry of Ayush, and Patanjali Ayurved Ltd., following a plea from the IMA.
"The entire country is taken for a ride! You wait for two years when the Acts says this (misleading advertisements) is prohibited," Live Law quoted Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah as telling Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj.
The Union's law officer, while agreeing that misleading advertisements cannot be accepted stated that it is for the concerned States to take action under the Act. The Union has been asked to file an affidavit explaining the steps it has taken.
The plea alleged a smear campaign by Ramdev against the vaccination drive and modern medicines.
The IMA cited several commercials that purportedly depicted allopathy and its practitioners in a negative light. It also claimed that companies that provide ayurvedic drugs have also made "disparaging" claims in an effort to deceive the public.
