Yoga guru Baba Ramdev on Tuesday agreed to take down videos and social media posts featuring comments about the popular drink Rooh Afza that invited the ire of the Delhi High Court. Ramdev’s lawyer told the could that the videos in question, which featured controversial terms such as ‘sharbat jihad’ would be taken down immediately.
The assurance was made soon after the Delhi High Court expressed strong displeasure with Ramdev’s comments targeting Rooh Afza. The “indefensible” comments shock the “conscience of court”, the Delhi High Court said on Tuesday morning as it heard a plea by Rooh Afza-maker Hamdard against Baba Ramdev’s comments.
The court took serious note of Ramdev’s remarks. “I couldn’t believe my ear and eyes when I saw the video,” the judge observed. Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Hamdard, argued that the issue went beyond disparagement and was “akin to hate speech,” aimed at creating communal discord. “It must be removed!” he asserted.
Around an hour after the Delhi High Court’s observation, Baba Ramdev’s lawyer told the court that the Patanjali group would be taking down all the videos in question.
“I have [been] advised and we are pulling out the videos,” the lawyer told the court. “Whatever is in my control will be removed,” he assured, adding that if there was additional content flagged, “they can give it to us.”
Noting the assurance, the High Court instructed, “At the outset, counsel appearing on behalf of the defendant on instructions submits that all impugned ads in print or video will be taken down or suitably altered. Let an affidavit be placed on record stating he shall not issue any such statements or advertisements or social media posts similar to this in future.”
As counsels debated what should be included in the affidavit, the bench intervened: “File an affidavit which covers this, we will see. We don’t want such cases coming.” The court ordered that the affidavit be filed within five days and listed the matter for the next hearing on May 1.
When the court referred to another statement allegedly made by Ramdev—“Fir purane sharbat par apne dharm aur dhan ki barbadi kyu(Then why did you ruin your faith and wealth over the old sharbat?). To this, Patanjali’s counsel urged, “Please don’t exploit the fairness.”
Ramdev Baba’s comments in question were made earlier this month when he launched Patanjali’s rose sharbat. During the launch, Baba Ramdev said, “There’s a company that gives you sharbat, but the money it earns is used to construct madrasas and mosques.” While he did not name Hamdard or Rooh Afza, his comments were widely understood to have been directed at the popular drink.
“If you drink that sharbat, madrasas and mosques will be built. But if you drink this [referring to Patanjali’s rose sharbat], gurukuls will be built, Acharya Kulam will be developed, Patanjali University will expand, and the Bharatiya Shiksha Board will grow.”
“Just like there is love jihad, this is also a kind of sharbat jihad. To protect yourself from this sharbat jihad, this message must reach everyone,” Baba Ramdev had also said, prompting Hamdard to file a petition against the comments.
He also compared other sharbat brands to “toilet cleaners,” saying, “Protect your family and innocent children from the poison of toilet cleaners being sold as soft drinks and sharbat Jihad. Choose only Patanjali sharbat and juices,” the brand declared on social media.
This isn’t the first time Baba Ramdev and Patanjali have come into controversy. Over the past two years, Patanjali and its founders have faced several legal challenges due to their advertisements. The matter escalated nationally after the Indian Medical Association (IMA) filed a plea against Patanjali Ayurved, leading the Supreme Court to impose a temporary ban on its ads and issue contempt notices over misleading claims.
In January, a Kerala court issued bailable warrants against Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna after they failed to appear in a case concerning misleading ads by Divya Pharmacy. A similar case was also registered in Kozhikode.
The matter is scheduled to be heard again on April 12.
