THE PATANJALI CASE HAS OPENED A CAN OF WORMS

It is indeed commendable the Supreme Court has decided to take Patanjali by the scruff of its neck. Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balakrishna would not have been

- GURBIR SINGH

so brazen had it not been for the tacit support of the state machinery. Having opened a can of worms, the Supreme Court now has also rightly expanded the scope of the case to other unethical FMCG advertising.

the Patanjali case is a frightening example of how money is to be made by peddling hocus pocus as remedies, and then using people’s fears against modern medicine to promote products that have doubtful efficacy.

As far back as 2019, the company splashed advertising for eyedrops which it claimed was “helpful in treating glaucoma or cataract, double vision, color vision, retinitis pigmentosa and night blindness”. though in violation of the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectional Advertisements) Act (DMRA) 1954, no action was taken.

Between February and October 2022, the Uttarakhand State Licensing Authority (SLA) and Drug Controller of Indian were alerted to several Patanjali campaigns for drugs that claimed to cure diabetes, and bring down cholesterol levels. Most dangerous was the one forits drug ‘Coronil’ launched in February 2021 that claimed to arrest the covid-19 virus. How can any regulator take action, if the then Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan flagged off the launch!

The court battle

The second leg of Baba Ramdev’s ad campaign was against allopathic medicines. In a video that went viral,he said modern medicines had killed off lakhs of patients. Finally, the Indian Medical Association (IMA)filed a petition challenging Baba Ramdev and notice was issued in August 2022 by the Supreme Court.