"Propaganda Against Patanjali, Will Reply In Court": Ramdev On Ad Row

Yoga teacher Ramdev has alleged a conspiratorial propaganda to tarnish the image of Patanjali Ayurved Lt, a day after the Supreme Court warned the company headed by Acharya Balkrishna against making "false" and "misleading" claims in ads about its medicines as cure for several diseases.

"We will fight the case in the Supreme Court and present our side of the story," Ramdev told reporters today, with Mr Balkrishna by his side.

Mr Balkrishna refuted allegations that Patanjali has been throwing shade at modern medical science and doctors, and instead raised a call to stop what he called "propaganda" by allopathic medicine practitioners against the use of Ayurvedic medicines.

"We are not against modern medicines. In fact, we say use them, take their help. But this propaganda against Ayurvedic medicines needs to stop," Mr Balkrishna told reporters, echoing what the yoga teacher and Patanjali's media face also said.

Patanjali Ayurved on its website says it makes "herbomineral preparations" and follows the principles of good manufacturing practices in its plants.

Herbomineral preparations contain minerals and metals as an integral part of the formulations, but these metals are in a compound form and their fate in the body will not be the same as it is for the elemental form of heavy metals, according to the peer-reviewed Indian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences.

"Money cannot decide truth and lie. They (allopathy) may have more hospitals, doctors and their voice may be heard more, but we have the inheritance of the wisdom of sages, we are not poor," Ramdev told reporters today.

The Supreme Court bench of Justices Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Prashant Kumar Mishra while hearing a petition by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) on Tuesday said "false and misleading advertisements of Patanjali Ayurved have to stop immediately."

"The court will take any such infraction very seriously," the Supreme Court said on the IMA's petition, which had referred to advertisements that allegedly used "disparaging" statements alluding to modern medicine doctors to mislead the public. The bench said it may consider imposing a fine of Rs 1 crore on every product if a false claim is made that it can cure a particular ailment.

The Supreme Court on August 23 issued notices to the Health Ministry, the Ministry of Ayush, and Patanjali Ayurved on the IMA's petition alleging a smear campaign by Ramdev against vaccination drives and modern medicines.