Supreme Court's contempt notice to Patanjali
04-Mar-2024The Supreme Court said the "entire country was being taken for a ride" through such misleading advertisements.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday came down heavily on Patanjali Ayurved over 'misleading' advertisements and banned the company from advertising any product related to diseases or other medical conditions. The Supreme Court said the "entire country was being taken for a ride" through such misleading advertisements.
This ruling follows a petition filed by the Indian Medical Association against Patanjali Ayurved's alleged dissemination of misleading advertisements.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court has served a contempt of court notice to Patanjali Ayurved and Acharya Balakrishnan for their involvement in spreading misleading advertisements across various media platforms. They have been granted a three-week period to respond to the notice.
During the hearing, Justices Hima Kohli and A. Amanullah criticised Patanjali Ayurved for releasing advertisements despite previous court orders issued last year.
In November 2023 as well, the Supreme Court warned Patanjali that it would be fined Rs 1 crore if a false claim is made that its products can "cure" certain diseases.
While referring to their previous warning to Patanjali, the bench said, "Despite our warning you are saying your products are better than chemical-based medicines."
The bench decided to issue notices for contempt of court orders to the two people featured in the advertisements, Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balakrishnan. Justice Amanullah said that these individuals must file a reply and explain how they disregarded the court's orders.
Sanghi, representing Patanji Ayurved, defended Baba Ramdev, stating that he is a 'sanyasi' who does not know English. However, Justice Amanullah deemed the document containing the advertisements as contemptuous and in clear violation of the court's orders.
