Delhi High Court prohibits Patanjali to run misleading ads against Dabur Chawanprash

New Delhi (India) July 3: The Patanjali Ayurveda, led by Yoga guru Ramdev, was prohibited by the Delhi High Court on Thursday from airing or publishing any "disparaging" ads directed at Dabur Chyawanprash.

Justice Mini Pushkarna's bench granted Dabur's appeal for temporary relief. A judge declared, "Application is allowed."

A new hearing in this case is set for July 14.

The Delhi High Court's ruling comes from a petition submitted by Dabur India regarding Chyawanprash-related TV commercials.

Patanjali suggests in its ads, which feature its founder Ramdev, that only its Chawanprash is "original" and "authentic," whereas the product made by other manufacturers who hold a 60% market share, is just average.

Dabur has submitted two motions for an interim injunction in the case, according to a report by Live Law. In the case, the court had summoned parties back in December of last year. Dabur said in the second application that Patanjali broadcast 6,182 ads promoting its product in a single week in spite of the summons.

Dabur's senior advocate, Sandeep Sethi, contended that Patanjali's ads misrepresented the number of herbs used in their Chyawanprash, claiming that it was created with over 51. He further claimed that Patanjali's product was contaminated with mercury, which prevented children from consuming it.

Sethi further argued that Patanjali damaged Dabur's legitimacy by calling Dabur's Chyawanprash, which was produced with 40 herbs, "ordinary," suggesting that only Patanjali followed Ayurvedic principles. According to him, this was clearly derogatory.

Senior Advocate Jayant Mehta, speaking on behalf of Patanjali, denied the allegations. He maintained that every component in Patanjali's product was safe for ingestion by humans and adhered to the recommended Ayurvedic formula. 

The matter initially came before the court on December 24, when it responded to Dabur's request for temporary relief by sending notices and summonses to Patanjali Ayurved.

Dabur said at previous sessions that they call us ordinary and they normalise a market leader. At present, Dabur's market share in Chyawanprash stands at 61.6%.

The company also took issue with Patanjali's declaration that only those knowledgeable in Ayurveda and Veda could make genuine Chyawanprash, which Dabur claimed damaged the company's reputation. 

Dabur also claimed that Patanjali's product was dangerous for kids since it contained mercury.

Aadrika Tayal