The Aryavarth Express
Agency(New Delhi):The Supreme Court has allocated a one-week period for Yoga guru Baba Ramdev and Balkrishna, Managing Director of Patanjali, to issue an unconditional public apology in relation to a case concerning misleading advertisements. This directive was issued during their court appearance on Tuesday, where Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah also engaged in a direct interaction with the defendants.
The justices emphasized the importance of the defendants feeling a connection with the court during this interaction. Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing both Ramdev and Balkrishna, affirmed their readiness to comply, stating that his clients are prepared to offer an “unconditional and unqualified apology.”
The case stems from advertisements that Patanjali had released, which purportedly made exaggerated claims about the health benefits of its products. This led to accusations of breaching a previous Supreme Court order from November 21, 2023, which had explicitly warned Patanjali against making such claims and violating advertising standards. In that order, the court had recorded assurances from Patanjali’s counsel that there would be no future violations concerning product advertising and branding.
Despite these assurances, the court noted that Patanjali had failed to adhere to its commitments, prompting further judicial scrutiny and the possibility of contempt proceedings. The Supreme Court has now given Ramdev and Balkrishna a chance to rectify these breaches by publicly apologizing, reflecting its intention not to let them off lightly without proper redressal of the issue.