The Uttarakhand government has informed the Supreme Court through an affidavit that it has authorized the filing of a complaint against Divya Pharmacy and Patanjali Ayurved Ltd., owned by Baba Ramdev. This action was taken due to the repeated violations of the drug advertisements law and the subsequent suspension of manufacturing licenses for 14 of their products.
The Uttarakhand State Licensing Authority announced on April 27 that the criminal complaint has been lodged against Patanjali Ayurved, along with its founders Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna, for breaching the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act.
An affidavit was filed in response to the plea made by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) regarding the criminal complaint, which addressed the alleged smear campaign conducted by Patanjali, as well as its founders Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna, against the COVID-19 vaccination campaign and modern medicine.
Ramdev has faced repeated criticism from the Supreme Court for failing to adhere to its instructions in an ongoing case regarding the cessation of deceptive advertisements for his traditional ayurvedic medicines. The drug regulator of traditional medicines in Uttarakhand suspended the manufacturing permits of Ramdev’s companies in an order issued on April 15.
On April 10, the highest court issued a directive instructing the former Joint Director of the State Licencing Authority and all the officials serving as District Ayurvedic and Unani Officers in Haridwar since 2018 to submit their individual affidavits elucidating their lack of action.
The Indian Medical Association has requested that Patanjali be held accountable for breaching the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act. This act prohibits the promotion of specific products for the treatment of certain diseases and disorders, such as diabetes, heart diseases, high or low blood pressure, and obesity.
