Yoga guru Ramdev (centre) arrives at the Supreme Court for hearing on the Patanjali misleading advertisements case, in New Delhi, on April 10, 2024
| Photo Credit: PTI
The Supreme Court has refused to accept the unconditional apology from Patanjali co-founder Baba Ramdev and managing director Acharya Balkrishna for advertising medical products in violation of giving an undertaking in the apex court in November 2023 prohibiting the self-styled yoga guru.
The Supreme Court on February 27 had issued contempt notice against Patanjali Ayurved and Mr. Balkrishna. Both Mr. Ramdev and Mr. Balkrishna were in court today.
Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah told senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi that Mr. Ramdev has apologised only after being caught on the back foot. His violations of the undertaking to the court was deliberate and willful, they said.
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The SC recorded its dissatisfaction with the apology tendered by proposed contemnors Patanjali, Mr. Balkrishna and Mr. Ramdev, and posted the contempt of court case on April 16.
Separately, the court ordered the State Licensing Authority officers-in-charge — the present one and his predecessor — to file detailed affidavits on why action was not taken against Patanjali under the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act.
During the hearing, Justice Amanullah said Mr. Ramdev violated the undertaking twice, once by holding a press conference the very next day after Patanjali gave an undertaking and later even when the contempt was being heard.
“It was only they were summoned to appear in the court, when the writing was plain on the wall. They relented,” Justice Amanullah said.
Uttarakhand licensing authority pulled up
The Bench also turned its ire on the Uttarakhand State Licensing Authority for “twiddling their thumbs” and doing nothing to prevent the publications and advertisements.
“Why should we not come down like a ton of bricks on your officers? They have been fillibustering,” Justice Kohli said.
The court said the assurances of the State Licensing Authority and the apology of the proposed contemnors are not worth the paper they are written on.
Justice Amanullah said it is conduct like this that makes a mockery of the Supreme Court with the public saying the judges are sitting in an ivory tower.
The Bench pulled up a State Licensing Authority officer in the courtroom whose letters said his office could only “warn” Patanjali for the advertisements and not act under the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act as the law was “suspended” following a Bombay High Court decision.
The officer said he would file an FIR, to which Justice Amanullah said he can now “rest” and some other person would file the FIR. “Now you have woken up to a statute which is the law of the land,” said Justice Kohli to Uttarakhand Licensing Authority.
“Why should one man get mercy when the public is cheated by medicines touted as a cure? When several letters were sent to him by people aggrieved,” Justice Kohli said of the Licensing Authority officer’s conduct.
He described the proposed contemnors’ conduct as hubris to abject surrender.
The bench directed all the District Ayurvedic and Unani Officers in Haridwar, who served with the Uttarakhand State Licensing Authority from 2018 to 2024, to file affidavits explaining their inaction against Patanjali under the law.
