The Supreme Court today refused to accept an “unconditional apology” of Patanjali Ayurved’s co-founder Ramdev for not abiding by the undertaking given to it in the misleading advertisements case.
Yoga guru Ramdev and Patanjali Ayurved’s Managing Director Balkrishna had yesterday submitted an untendered apology to the top court and had sought pardon in the case.
“The apology is on paper. Their back is against the wall. We decline to accept this, we consider it a deliberate violation of undertaking,” the bench of Justice Hima Kohli and Justice A Amanullah said.
The top court came down heavily on Ramdev and Balkrishna for repeatedly violating its orders and filing improper affidavits. “Tendering apology is not enough. You should suffer the consequences for violating the court’s order. We do not want to be generous in this case,” the bench said.
The Supreme Court also noted that Ramdev and Balkrishna sent their apologies to the media first. “Till the matter hit the court, the condemners did not find it fit to send us the affidavits. They sent it to the media first, till 7.30 pm yesterday it was not uploaded for us. They believe in publicity clearly,” Justice Kohli said.
The top court had on April 2 too had refused to accept an apology tendered by Patanjali after the top court rap during the earlier hearing. “We are not happy with your apology,” the top court had said.
Giving them a last opportunity to file affidavits within a week, the bench took strong note of their “absolute defiance” in not following the undertaking given before it in the case filed by the Indian Medical Association. “You have to abide by the undertaking given to court and you have broken every barrier,” the bench said.
“You should have made sure that the solemn undertaking should have been in letter and spirit. We can also say that we are sorry for not accepting it. Your apology is not persuading this court. It is more of a lip service,” the top court said.
On February 27, the top court had directed the company to stop all electronic and print advertisements of its medicines giving misleading” information with immediate effect.
The case began in November last year when the Supreme Court, while hearing a petition filed by the Indian Medical Association (IMA), cautioned Patanjali Ayurved against making “false” and “misleading” claims in advertisements about its medicines.
IMA had referred to several advertisements which allegedly projected the allopathy and the doctors in poor light, saying that “disparaging” statements have also been made by firms, engaged in the production of ayurvedic medicines, to mislead the general public.
These commercials say that the medical practitioners themselves are dying despite taking modern medicines, the counsel for the IMA had said.
