The Delhi High Court on Monday directed yoga guru Ramdev to remove certain “offending” social media posts related to the use of “Coronil” for COVID-19.
Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani stated that he was “allowing” a plea submitted by several doctors’ associations against Ramdev.
“There are directions for taking down some of the offending posts and content. There are directions to the defendant to take down those set of tweets in three days,” the judge remarked. If the directive is not complied with, microblogging platform X (formerly Twitter) will remove the content, the court added.
The plea is part of a 2021 lawsuit filed by doctors’ associations against Ramdev, his associate Acharya Balkrishna, and Patanjali Ayurveda. Justice Bhambhani had reserved the order on the issue on May 21 after hearing from the parties.
As per the lawsuit, Ramdev made “unsubstantiated claims” about “Coronil” being a cure for COVID-19, contrary to the licence granted to the drug, which only permitted it to be marketed as an “immuno-booster.” Three resident doctors’ associations from the All India Institutes of Medical Sciences in Rishikesh, Patna, and Bhubaneswar, as well as the Association of Resident Doctors at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research in Chandigarh, the Union of Resident Doctors of Punjab (URDP), the Resident Doctors’ Association at Lala Lajpat Rai Memorial Medical College in Meerut, and the Telangana Junior Doctors’ Association in Hyderabad moved the high court in 2021 against Ramdev and others.
They alleged that there was a misinformation campaign and a marketing strategy aimed at boosting the sales of products sold by Ramdev, including “Coronil,” which was claimed to be an alternative treatment for COVID-19. On October 27, 2021, the high court issued a summons to Ramdev and others, stating that the lawsuit was not frivolous and that a case for its institution was “definitely” made out.
