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Informist, Tuesday, Aug 27, 2024

 

--SC stays omission of rule preventing Ayurved drugs misleading advt 

--CONTEXT: SC hearing misleading advt case against Patanjali, Ramdev 

--SC seeks govt view on omitting rule on Ayurved drugs misleading advt 

 

NEW DELHI – The Supreme Court today stayed a government notification in July to omit Rule 170 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945, relating to the prevention of misleading advertisements for Ayurvedic, Siddha or Unani drugs. The top court sought the government's clarification regarding omitting the rule and said it would remain on the statute books.

 

The apex court was hearing a petition filed by the Indian Medical Association alleging continuous, systematic, and unabated spread of misinformation regarding allopathic and modern medicines by Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. 

 

"We think that this omission of Rule 170 done by the Union on Jul 1 flies in the face of this court's order passed on May 7, and we are not ready to accept it at all," the Bench of Justice Hima Kohli and Justice Sandeep Mehta said. On May 7, the Ministry of Ayush told the apex court that it would withdraw its letter issued in August 2023 to all states. The letter said an advisory board had recommended deletion of Rule 170, and pending action on the recommendation, all authorities were directed not to initiate any action under the said rule.

 

The top court today pulled up the government for omitting Rule 170. "You have withdrawn the letter but the rule stands omitted..How can you take this decision of omitting this rule in the teeth of the court's order?" Justice Kohli said.

 

Further, the top court asked Indian Medical Association President R.V. Asokan to give 20 physical copies of The Hindu newspaper, where he had given a public apology for his remarks against the top court in an interview published in April. The court's order came after it expressed dissatisfaction with "miniscule" font size of Asokan's apology. 

 

The apex court had twice rejected Asokan's apology in the case earlier. On Apr 23, the court asked the Indian Medical Association to put its own house in order first. Thereafter, in the interview on Apr 29, Asokan said the apex court had pointed fingers at the association for no reason. 

 

In the interview, Asokan said it was unfortunate that the court had criticised the Indian Medical Association. He said the "vague and generalised statements" had demoralised private doctors and that "it does not behove the Supreme Court to take a broadside against the medical profession of the country, which, after all, sacrificed so many lives for the COVID war".  End

 

Reported by Surya Tripathi

Edited by Vidhi Verma

 

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