The Supreme Court on Tuesday summoned Yog guru Ramdev and Patanjali Ayurved MD Acharya Balkrishna to appear before it on the next date of hearing for not responding to the contempt notices. This is in connection with a false advertisements case against Patanjali Ayurved, news agency ANI reported.
On Tuesday, the top court not only asked Baba Ramdev to appear in person but also issued a notice asking why he should not be prosecuted for contempt of court.
"Now, we will ask your client to appear in court. Now, we will make Baba Ramdev also a party. Both will be asked to appear in court," the Supreme Court told senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi appearing on behalf of Baba Ramdev. The court further said it was not postponing the hearing of the case.
Last month, the Supreme Court issued a contempt notice to Patanjali Ayurved and Acharya Balkrishna for 'misleading advertisements' in several media outlets. The top court condemned Patanjali for giving 'misleading' adverts and barred the company from advertising any products pertaining to diseases or medical conditions.
While granting three weeks to Patanjali Ayurved and Acharya Balkrishna to respond to the contempt notice, the top court emphatically said the "entire country was being taken for a ride."
This, however, is not the first time that the top court warned Patanjali against advertising products that can "cure" diseases.
In November last year, the Supreme Court warned the company that it would be fined Rs 1 crore if it makes a false claim that its products can "cure" certain diseases. At the time, bench also slammed the Union government for failing to take any action against Patanjali's advertisements.
While referring to this warning, the top court in February said: "Despite our warning, you are saying your products are better than chemical-based medicines."
Representing the Indian Medical Association (IMA), senior advocate PS Patwalia highlighted a press conference by Ramdev and said Patanjali Ayurved has published advertisements claiming to cure ailments including asthma and diabetes. Advocate Patwalia also mentioned a defamation case filed by Patanjali Ayurved against the Advertising Council.
Patanjali also published an advert titled: "Misconceptions spread by allopathy: Save yourself and the country from the misconceptions spread by pharma and medical industry." On this, the top court said that advertisements showing cures for illnesses including diabetes and asthma cannot be defended.
"What do you mean by permanent relief to the diseases? It means only two things-- either death or cure," the Supreme Court said. It also asked Patanjali Ayurved to show how they discharged their duties in tackling misleading advertisements.