Can’t let public be taken for ride: SC

Yoga guru Ramdev and his aide Balkrishna. File pics

"We can't let the public be taken for a ride," the Supreme Court said on Tuesday while asking the Centre and state licensing authorities to "activate" themselves to deal with misleading advertisements. While questioning the Centre over an August 2023 letter by the Ministry of Ayush asking the licensing authorities not to initiate or take any action under rule 170 of Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945, the apex court also pulled up the Indian Medical Association (IMA) about the alleged unethical acts of its members in prescribing highly expensive medicines for valuable consideration.

Baba Ramdev performing yoga

A bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah, while hearing the case related to misleading advertisements by Patanjali Ayurved Ltd, said there are several other Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCGs) companies going that way and the Centre has to respond as to what it has done about this. "We can't let the public be taken for a ride," the bench observed, adding, "If this (misleading advertisements) is happening, the Union of India needs to activate itself and so do the state licensing authorities".

Yoga guru Ramdev leaves after appearing before the SC. Pic/PTI

"You can't just shrug your shoulders and say I have conveyed the complaint to the state authority and it is for them to do what they are doing," the bench said. The bench told the IMA's counsel that while the association is pointing fingers at Patanjali, "the other four fingers are also pointing at you (IMA)". "It is not going to be all just that there are FMCGs. There is you and your members who are prescribing medicines on the strength of recommendations made for which there is valuable consideration from what we understand," the bench said, adding, "If that is happening, why should not we turn the beam on you?"

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