The Delhi High Court on Tuesday expressed strong anger at Baba Ramdev’s recent comments, which appeared to target the popular drink Rooh Afza. The court said his remarks were “indefensible” and had “shocked the conscience of the court”. These comments were discussed while the court was hearing a case filed by Hamdard Laboratories, the company that makes Rooh Afza.

Baba Ramdev launched Patanjali’s rose sharbat. During the launch, he said, “There's a company that gives you sharbat, but the money it earns is used to construct madrasas and mosques.” While he didn’t name Hamdard or Rooh Afza directly, people believed that he was referring to Rooh Afza.

He also added, “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.”

These remarks angered Hamdard, and they moved to court, calling the comments an attempt to spread hate.

Court hears the case, says remarks are “shocking”

During the hearing, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who appeared for Hamdard, told the court that this was not just a case of insulting a product. “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 said.

Baba Ramdev had also compared the issue to “love jihad”, a term used by some to suggest forced religious conversions. He said, “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.”

He even went as far as calling other sharbat brands “toilet cleaners”. A Patanjali post on social media said, “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.”

 

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