The Supreme Court on Tuesday restrained Patanjali Ayurved from advertising its herbal products as permanent cure for incurable diseases, saying “the entire country is being taken for a ride and the government is sitting with its eyes shut”.

The court issued contempt notices to the company and its managing director Acharya Balkrishna.

A bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah also pulled up the Centre for failing to take action against Patanjali Ayurved for making “misleading” claims and directed it to file an affidavit on the steps taken against the company and its officials for flouting the undertaking given by the firm in the court about its products and their medicinal efficacy.

Patanjali, with which yoga guru Ramdev is associated, had on November 21 last year assured the court that it would not put out any advertisements making claims about the medicinal efficacy of its products until the court disposed of the matter.

“Prima facie this court is of the opinion that the respondents are in violation of the undertaking given to this court on November 21, 2023…. The respondents are restrained from advertising products manufactured and marketed by it which are meant to address ailments specified as diseases/disorders in the Drugs and Magic Remedies Act…” Justice Kohli, who headed the bench, said.

The apex court posted the matter for further hearing on March 19.

The company is expected to file its response by that time.

The Supreme Court passed Tuesday’s order on a complaint by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) accusing Patanjali of holding news conferences and making misleading claims of permanently curing ailments such as diabetes, asthma and arthritis in violation of the undertaking given by it to the court.

The IMA had also accused Patanjali of conducting a smear campaign against allopathy and promoting its products in violation of Section 3 of the Drugs and Magic Remedies (objectionable advertisements prohibition) Act 1954, which prohibits any promise of permanent cure for specified diseases/ailments.

Senior advocate P.S. Patwalia, appearing for the IMA, placed before the court newspaper advertisements and audio and video clippings in which Ramdev and Patanjali Ayurved had continued to make the “misleading” claims.

“The entire country is being taken for a ride and the government is sitting with its eyes shut,” the bench told additional solicitor-general K.M. Natraj, appearing for the Centre.

Natraj told the bench that under the Act the states were supposed to take action, but assured the court that the Centre would take the necessary steps.

“You wait for two years to act when the Act says it is prohibited,” Justice Amanullah observed.

“You took the court lightly. This court had bound you to the statement you had made,” the bench said while referring to the earlier assurance by the company.

“How can you say you will cure? Despite our warning you are saying our (Patanjali) things are better than chemicals-based medicines?… You had the courage and guts to still come up with these advertisements after our order?” Justice Amanullah said during the hearing.

The IMA had filed the petition in 2022 accusing the Patanjali group of maligning allopathic medicines, particularly the Covid-19 vaccines, and making false and misleading claims on herbal remedy as a permanent cure for various ailments.