Delhi High Court orders Ramdev and Balkrishna to retract Coronil Covid-19 cure claims

The Delhi High Court has directed Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna to retract their claims that Coronil is a 'cure' for COVID-19 within three days. This legal action follows increasing scrutiny over the efficacy of Patanjali products.

The court also ordered Baba Ramdev to remove statements blaming allopathy doctors for the deaths of numerous people during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani stated, "I have directed the defendants to take down certain tweets in three days, if they fail to do it, the social media intermediaries will take down the content," as reported by Bar and Bench.

On Monday, the Delhi High Court instructed Baba Ramdev to publicly withdraw his statements claiming Coronil as a 'cure' for COVID-19, specifying that it is merely an immunity booster. The verdict is part of a 2021 lawsuit filed by several doctors' associations against Ramdev, his associate Acharya Balkrishna, and Patanjali Ayurveda.

Earlier, Bombay High Court orders Patanjali to deposit Rs 50 lakh for breaching interim order.

The lawsuit contends that Ramdev made "unsubstantiated claims" regarding Coronil as a COVID-19 cure, contrary to the licence granted to the drug, which only identifies it as an "immuno-booster." Senior counsel for the doctors sought a direction to prevent Ramdev and others from making similar statements in the future.

The doctors' associations alleged a misinformation campaign aimed at increasing sales of Ramdev's products, including Coronil, which was marketed as an alternative treatment for COVID-19. 

The plaintiffs include the Resident Doctors' Association of AIIMS Rishikesh, Patna, and Bhubaneswar, the Association of Resident Doctors of PGIMER Chandigarh, the Union of Resident Doctors of Punjab, the Resident Doctors' Association of Lala Lajpat Rai Memorial Medical College Meerut, and the Telangana Junior Doctors' Association, Hyderabad.

The Supreme Court has also reserved its order on a contempt plea against Ramdev concerning misleading advertisements by Patanjali.