Baba Ramdev, promoter of Patanjali Ayurved, has once again been accused of flouting the code of medical conduct and business ethics for handling the pandemic over the past year. Also previously, he had to withdraw his exaggerated and unfounded allegations regarding various Covid-19 issues that smacked of unwarranted promotion of his business. The latest case of eating a humble pie concerns its mockery and denigration of the allopathic line of handling Covid-19, even as healthcare workers and scientists save thousands of patients, risking their own lives. The Baba was forced to withdraw his pompous statement which questioned the effectiveness of allopathic drugs following the rap by Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, as the Indian Medical Association took umbrage at the comments of Ramdev’s that have the potential to mislead the public struggling to get proper treatment during the second deadly current surge.

Its long litany of overtaking notoriously includes advertising its hollow herbal “ corona kit ” to “ cure ” Covid last June. An FIR was filed against him for conspiring to sell a fake Ayurveda medicine with the misleading claim. That he had to repeat his remarks on this point also proves his guilt. Significantly, such irresponsible behavior gives a bad name to the ancient practice of Ayurveda and its honest practitioners.

Even though Vardhan called Ramdev’s baseless claims “ unfortunate, ” what is more unfortunate is that the businessman slipped away slightly for his actions. His immunity stems from the state patronage he enjoys for the perceived costume of nationalism wrapped around his “swadeshi” products, with ministers approving their promotional events. It is time for action to be taken against false unscientific claims under the Disaster Management Act 2005 and the Epidemic Diseases Act 1897. The outbreak of the pandemic has been identified by scientific methods. This is followed by extensive research for treatment as well as prevention with vaccines. Even though a cure remains elusive, the suffering of millions of victims has been alleviated. It is criminal to mock such efforts.