Delhi HC warns Patanjali of fine for challenging order on ‘disparaging’ ads about Dabur product

The Delhi High Court on Friday pulled up yoga guru Ramdev’s Patanjali Ayurved for challenging a single-judge order in July that restrained it from running allegedly disparaging advertisements about a product manufactured by consumer goods company Dabur, Bar and Bench reported.

A bench of Justices Hari Shankar and Om Prakash Shukla told Patanjali Ayurved to either withdraw the petition or face costs. It also noted that the July 3 order did not direct the conglomerate to take down the entire advertisement but to modify certain portions of it.

Advocate Jayant Mehta, representing Patanjali Ayurved, asked the court for time to take instructions on the next course of action.

The matter was listed for September 23.

On July 3, Justice Mini Pushkarna passed the interim order on a petition filed by Dabur, which alleged that Patanjali Ayurved was disparaging its Chyawanprash product by claiming that no other manufacturer had the knowledge to prepare it.

Chyawanprash is an Ayurvedic formulation made from a blend of sugar, honey, ghee, Indian gooseberry jam and several herbs and spices. It is sold as a dietary supplement.

The matter arose after Patanjali Ayurved telecast an advertisement featuring Ramdev, in which he questioned the authenticity of Chyawanprash products sold by other companies.

In its petition, Dabur objected to references in the advertisements that described a “40-herb” Chyawanprash as “ordinary”. This...

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