Patanjali ads case: On April 23, the Supreme Court raised concerns about the size and visibility of an apology issued by Ramdev and Balkrishna for their previous advertisements.
Patanjali misleading ads case: Patanjali Ayurved Limited co-founders Yoga guru Ramdev and Balkrishna issued a new public apology in newspapers on Wednesday, April 24. This came after the Supreme Court, during a contempt case hearing, questioned them about the size and visibility of an apology issued by the company for previous misleading advertisements.
The new “unconditional public apology” from Patanjali says, “In wake of on going matter before the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India, we in our individual capacity as well as on behalf of the Company, unconditionally apologise for the non-compliance or disobedience of directions/orders of the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India.” It also has more fonts this time.
“We truly apologize for the meeting and press conference on November 22, 2023. We really apologize for the error that occurred when our adverts were published, and we promise that it won’t happen again. We promise to carefully and genuinely follow the Hon’ble Court’s guidelines and instructions. It continues, “We pledge to respect the court’s majesty and respect to all applicable laws and directives from the Hon’ble Court of law and related agencies.
Ramdev and Balkrishna had previously offered an “unconditional and unqualified apology” before the Supreme Court regarding advertisements released by their company, which made exaggerated claims about the medicinal effectiveness of its products.
On Tuesday, Ramdev and his associate Balkrishna were questioned by the Supreme Court about how prominently they had published their unqualified apology in newspapers.
During the hearing, a bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah asked Ramdev and Balkrishna if the size of the apology advertisement was comparable to the usual advertisements they publish in newspapers.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi told the bench that Ramdev and Balkrishna had sent out an unconditional apologies on Monday for their “lapses.”
“Where was it published?” the bench asked.
Mukul Rohatgi stated that the apology had been published in 67 newspapers across the country.
The bench further inquired, “Was it prominently published?” and directed the advocate to submit the published apology on record. They expressed their intention to examine the actual apology published in newspapers.
The bench stated, “They said advertisements are not on record. It is submitted that the same have been collated and shall be filed in the course of the day with copies to counsel for the parties. Needful shall be done within two days with copies to counsel for the parties.”
It stated that the issue regarding Ramdev and Balkrishna’s apology will be taken into consideration on April 30.
