Post Supreme Court Drops Charges On Patanjali, Ramdev Remarks On Allopathy Resurface

Following the Supreme Court of India dropping contempt charges against Baba Ramdev and Patanjali Ayurved for misleading advertising claims targeting allopathy, Ramdev's critical remarks on allopathy have resurfaced.

The contempt proceedings against Ramdev commenced last year after the Indian Medical Association (IMA) filed a petition challenging Patanjali's advertisements. The IMA's case accused Ramdev of spreading misinformation about allopathy without substantiating his claims.

On August 13, the Supreme Court of India acknowledged Ramdev’s attempts to address the issues raised in the contempt of court proceedings against him. However, just two days later, Ramdev’s remarks on Independence Day reignited controversy.

During his Independence Day speech, Ramdev reiterated his criticism of allopathy asserting, "The dream of medical independence is still a major dream because by consuming the poisonous medicines of allopathy, crores of people are dying every year." 

He claimed that social media is fuelling an 'ideological war' that harms the nation’s youth. Ramdev declared, "On the occasion of 78th Independence Day, Patanjali has pledged that besides political, educational, medical, economical, ideological and cultural independence, we will help bring freedom from diseases, drugs and lust in this country," 

On August 13, the Supreme Court bench of Justice Hima Kohli and Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah concluded the contempt of court proceedings against Patanjali Ayurved along with its co-founders Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna after they issued an apology and took corrective measures.

The court accepted their apology but cautioned that the proceedings could be reopened if there are future violations of court orders. Senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi, Vipin Sanghi, Simranjeet Singh and Gautam Talukdar from Athena Legal represented Patanjali, Balkrishna and Ramdev in the case.

Both Ramdev and Balkrishna have issued multiple apologies in the Supreme Court and published them in various newspapers across the country. On 21 November 2023, the Supreme Court rebuked Patanjali Ayurved for misleading advertisements, leading the company to assure that such ads would cease. The court had criticised the misleading nature of these ads, stating that 'the entire country was being taken for a ride'.

Despite this, Ramdev made statements the following day, including claims that 'remedies for blood pressure were lies spread by allopathy'. Later, in December, another unlisted company owned by Balkrishna ran similar misleading advertisements.

In February, the Supreme Court took action after observing continued misleading ads. The court issued contempt notices and subsequently sought the personal appearance of Ramdev and Balkrishna due to the lack of response to the contempt notice.

In April, both Ramdev and Balkrishna appeared in court and issued an 'unconditional apology'. However, the court was dissatisfied with the language and prominence of the apology published in the newspaper. As a result, Patanjali issued a revised apology.