NEW DELHI: Individuals have the right to choose between traditional Ayurvedic medicine and allopathic medicine, the Center on Wednesday told the Supreme Court in a misleading advertising case against Patanjali Ayurveda. The Center also said people should refrain from maligning either system.
The Supreme Court has severely reprimanded Patanjali Ayurveda, its founder Ramdev and managing director Acharya Balkrishna. The court rejected Patanjali’s initial apology and also questioned the government’s inaction on the issue. “We wonder why the government has chosen to turn a blind eye,” it said last week.
Ramdev and Balkrishna issued an “unconditional and unqualified apology” in the Supreme Court over advertisements published by the company that made exaggerated claims about the medicinal properties of their products.
In two separate affidavits filed in the Supreme Court, Mr. Ramdev and Mr. Balkrishna have made unconditional apologies for the “violation of statements” recorded in the Supreme Court’s November 21 last year order.
A bench of Justice Hima Kohli and Justice Asanuddin Amanullah is scheduled to hear the matter on Wednesday.
On April 2, the Supreme Court slammed Ramdev and Balkrishna, rejecting their apologies as “lip service.”
He also questioned the Centre’s alleged inaction over Patanjali’s exaggerated claims about the efficacy of his products and denigrated allopathy at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, asking why the government chose to “turn a blind eye”. I was wondering if that was the case.
The court strongly condemned Mr. Balkrishna’s statement that the Drugs and Cosmetics (Magic Remedies) Act was “outdated” and held that Patanjali Ayurveda’s advertisements were “part of the law”. He said that there will be no punishment for violating the obligations given to the government.
The Supreme Court is hearing a petition by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) alleging a smear campaign against the vaccination drive and modern medicine.
On March 19, the court directed Ramdev and Balkrishna to appear in court, taking exception to the company’s failure to respond to notices issued in the suit regarding advertisements of its products and their medicinal properties.
The Supreme Court granted Ramdev an entertainment notice as the advertisement issued by Patanjali was included in the contract given to the court on November 21, 2023 and reflected support from Patanjali. He said he deemed it appropriate to issue the document.
(With PTI input)
