The Delhi High Court on Tuesday expressed strong displeasure with Baba Ramdev's recent comments that used terms such as "sharbat jihad" to target the popular drink Rooh Afza. The "indefensible" comments shock the "conscience of court", the Delhi High Court said as it heard a plea by Rooh Afza-maker Hamdard against Baba Ramdev's comments.
The comments in question were made earlier this month when Baba Ramdev launched Patanjali's rose sharbat. During the launch, Baba Ramdev said, "There's a company that gives you sharbat, but the money it earns is used to construct madrasas and mosques." While he did not name Hamdard or Rooh Afza, his comments were widely understood to have been directed at the popular drink.
"If you drink that sharbat, madrasas and mosques will be built. But if you drink this [referring to Patanjali's rose sharbat], gurukuls will be built, Acharya Kulam will be developed, Patanjali University will expand, and the Bharatiya Shiksha Board will grow."
Following the remarks, the company moved to the High Court against Baba Ramdev.
"Just like there is love jihad, this is also a kind of sharbat jihad. To protect yourself from this sharbat jihad, this message must reach everyone," Baba Ramdev had also said, prompting Hamdard to file a petition against the comments.
Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who appeared for Hamdard in the Delhi High Court on Tuesday, said, "This is a case which is shocking, which goes beyond disparagement. This is a case of creating a communal divide, akin to hate speech. It will not have protection from the law of defamation."
He also compared other sharbat brands to “toilet cleaners,” saying, “Protect your family and innocent children from the poison of toilet cleaners being sold as soft drinks and sharbat Jihad. Choose only Patanjali sharbat and juices,” the brand declared on social media.
This isn’t the first time Baba Ramdev and Patanjali have come into controversy. Over the past two years, Patanjali and its founders have faced several legal challenges due to their advertisements. The matter escalated nationally after the Indian Medical Association (IMA) filed a plea against Patanjali Ayurved, leading the Supreme Court to impose a temporary ban on its ads and issue contempt notices over misleading claims.
In January, a Kerala court issued bailable warrants against Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna after they failed to appear in a case concerning misleading ads by Divya Pharmacy. A similar case was also registered in Kozhikode.
The matter is scheduled to be heard again on April 12.
