The “unconditional apology” from Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna over the deceptive advertising of Patanjali’s pharmaceutical products was rejected by the Supreme Court on Wednesday. Judges Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah harshly criticized Patanjali, stating that their acts were “wilful, deliberate and repeated violations” of the rulings of the highest court.
Speaking on behalf of the Patanjali founders, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi told the court that mistakes are a part of life. The Supreme Court, however, rebuked the attorney, saying that individual must suffer in certain situations. “We are not blinded…We don’t want to be generous in this case,” the bench stated.
The company had promised the court on November 21, 2023, that it would not make any “casual statements claiming medicinal efficacy or against any system of medicine.” The court was outraged by an advertisement the company released on December 4, 2023.
In an affidavit filed on Tuesday, Ramdev had promised “to be more vigilant in future”.
“I hereby tender my unconditional apology in regard to the issue of advertisements which occurred after the statement of counsel of Respondent No. 5 (Patanjali Ayurved) which was recorded in the order dated 21.11.2023, which I am informed has the force of an injunction. I sincerely regret this lapse and I wish to assure the Hon’ble court that the same will not be repeated,” Ramdev said in the affidavit.
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