The Supreme Court on Tuesday came down heavily on Patanjali Ayurved which is co-owned by yoga guru Ramdev over 'misleading' advertisements.
The top court banned the company from advertising any product related to diseases or other medical conditions. The SC said the "entire country was being taken for a ride" through such misleading advertisements.
During the hearing, Justices Hima Kohli and A. Amanullah criticised 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 3.5 lakh members, the IMA is the largest association of doctors practising evidence-based medicine.
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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 Rs 1 crore 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.
Furthermore, the court, on August 23, 2022, issued notices to the Union Health Ministry, Ministry of Ayush, and Patanjali Ayurved Ltd., following a plea from the Indian Medical Association (IMA).
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.
