From Ayurveda to the Apex Court: Patanjali’s Ad Debacle

From Ayurveda to the Apex Court: Patanjali’s Ad Debacle

The Supreme Court last week has again pulled up Baba Ramdev and Patanjali Ayurved for false advertisements and statements. So is this the latest Chapter of the Ayurveda Vs Allopathy debate?

1. Patanjali ran several ads proclaiming their products could cure certain diseases, despite not having scientific evidence to prove it.

2. The Indian Medical Association (IMA) criticized these claims and filed a petition against these advertisements and claims in August 2022.

3. The IMA also objected to public statements where Baba Ramdev called allopathy a "stupid and bankrupt science" and blamed allopathic medicine for Covid-19 deaths.

4. The IMA accused the ads of contributing to vaccine hesitancy during the pandemic.

5. The Supreme Court instructed Baba Ramdev and Patanjali Ayurved Managing Director Acharya Balkrishna to stop such advertisement and not issue casual statements claiming medicinal efficacy or against any system of medicine.

6. Despite the Supreme Court orders, Patanjali continued to run such ads and Baba Ramdev continued such remakes at a press conference.

7. The court has therefore come down hard on them and emphasised that repetitive apologies without genuine intent are inadequate.

8. The court also pulled up the state of Uttarakhand and the Joint Director of the State Licensing Authority for failing to act against Patanjali for such advertisements.

9. So the recent proceedings are not a discussion of the efficacy of ayurveda, but rather the blatant disregard for rules by one company.

10. This has again brought to light the disparity in regulations on marketing for allopathic pharmaceutical companies and practitioners compared to alternate systems of medicine which are comparatively less regulated.

High time that such advertisements be banned and action be taken against any company spreading misinformation. The Supreme Court is yet to determine the punishment for this contempt of court.

What do you think should be the action taken?

#healthcare #advertisements #misinformation