Allopathy Vs Ayurveda Debate: ‘Can’t restrain Ramdev’s free speech,” says Delhi High Court

June 4: Delhi High Court refuses to restrain Ramdev from making any statement against the usage of allopathic medicines. A single-judge bench of Justice C Hari Shankar was hearing a suit filed by Delhi Medical Association (DMA), accusing Ramdev of falsely representing Coronil as a cure for Covid-19 and spreading misinformation about modern medicine, or allopathy. Though the High Couurt issued summons to Ramdev on a plea by the Delhi Medical Association, it remained skeptical on the “maintainability” of the suit and at one stage said DMA “should be spending time on finding cure for the pandemic instead of wasting the court’s time.”

The High Court, however, asked Ramdev’s counsel to tell him not to make any provocative statements and sought his reply on the suit in three weeks’ time. Delhi High Court refused to restrain yoga guru Ramdev from making statements against allopathic medicines or in favour of Coronil, pointing out that any order to block has to be tested on the touchstone of free speech. The yoga guru is entitled to freedom of speech protected under Art 19(1) (a) of the Constitution, said the High Court .

A recent, controversial video of Baba Ramdev has been making the rounds of the rounds on the internet. In it, the Yoga guru alleged that, “Allopathy is a stupid and diwaliya science”. Further, in the same video, Ramdev also claimed that “lakhs and lakhs of people died because of administering allopathic medicines rather than a shortage of oxygen” amid the Covid-19 crisis. Ramdev’s counsel, senior advocate Rajiv Nayyar, told the court that his client has already retracted his remarks made against doctors on May 22. Issuing summons in the suit filed by Delhi Medical Association (DMA) against Ramdev and others, the court listed it for hearing on July 13.