SC warns Patanjali Ayurved with Rs 1 crore fine if it makes false claims
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New Delhi: The Supreme Court issued a stern warning to Patanjali Ayurved, co-founded by yoga guru Ramdev, cautioning against the dissemination of "false" and "misleading" claims in its advertisements regarding the curative properties of its medicines.
The caution came during a hearing of a plea filed by the Indian Medical Association (IMA), which accused Patanjali Ayurved of engaging in a smear campaign against the vaccination drive and modern medicines.
The bench, comprising Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Prashant Kumar Mishra, emphasized that all deceptive advertisements by Patanjali Ayurved must cease immediately. The court expressed its intent to take any such infractions seriously and hinted at the possibility of imposing a significant fine of ₹1 crore on each product if false curative claims were made.
This development stems from a previous notice issued by the Supreme Court on August 23, 2022, to the Union Health Ministry, Ministry of Ayush, and Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. The IMA alleged that Ramdev had launched a campaign criticizing allopathy and allopathic practitioners.
During the hearing, the bench directed Patanjali Ayurved to refrain from publishing misleading claims and advertisements against modern systems of medicine. Additionally, it called upon the counsel representing the Centre to propose remedies for the issue of misleading medical advertisements, where medicines are touted as perfect cures for specific diseases.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear IMA's plea on February 5 next year. In the previous notice, the court had strongly criticized Ramdev for his criticism of allopathy, emphasizing the need to refrain from abusive language towards doctors and other medical systems.
The IMA highlighted several advertisements that allegedly portrayed allopathic doctors negatively, claiming that disparaging statements had been made by companies producing ayurvedic medicines.
These commercials suggested that medical practitioners were succumbing to ailments despite using modern medicine, potentially discouraging vaccination efforts and the use of allopathic medicines in the country.
