The
Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Indian Medical Association (IMA) to ensure
Patanjali Ayurved withdraws all “misleading” advertisements on social media,
electronic media, and other platforms. This directive specifically targets 14
company products whose licences were revoked by the Uttarakhand licensing authority.
The
case, heard by a bench led by Justices Hima Kohli and Sandeep Mehta, was
initiated by the IMA, accusing Patanjali of disseminating deceptive medical
advertisements. The court mandated that no promotions for the 14 medicines
should be broadcast or published.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing
Patanjali, told the court that digital advertisements had been retracted.
However, Justice Kohli demanded additional details regarding actions taken
beyond internal channels, specifically questioning measures to inform social
media platforms and other intermediaries about the licence suspensions.
Advocate
PS Patwalia, representing the IMA, clarified that while the licences were
initially suspended, they were reinstated on May 17. The court directed the Uttarakhand
licensing authority to submit an affidavit within two weeks, outlining the
licensing process.
Justice
Kohli appointed advocate Shadan Farasat as amicus curiae to investigate the
operations of the Drugs and Licensing Authority. This decision followed
concerns about the effectiveness of Patanjali's efforts to eliminate the
misleading advertisements.
The
court was also informed that IMA president Dr RV Asokan had issued an
unconditional apology for his previous statements criticising the Supreme Court.
Justice Kohli acknowledged the affidavit submitted by Dr Asokan and noted his
expression of regret.
Dr Asokan's apology was also published in the IMA's
monthly magazine, on their website, and disseminated to news agencies. He
clarified that his comments were unintentional and not meant to disrespect the
court.