NEW DELHI, May 22: Yoga guru Baba Ramdev is in the midst of controversy again. The Indian Medical Association has demanded the union health ministry to take action against the yoga guru for misleading the people by making “unlearned” statements against allopathy and defamed scientific medicine.
In a statement on Saturday, the IMA said Ramdev should be prosecuted under the Epidemic Diseases Act as “untutored” statements are “a threat to the literate society of the country as well as to the poor people falling prey to him.”
Citing a video circulating on social media, the apex doctors’ body said Ramdev was seen saying that “allopathy ek aisi stupid aur diwalilya science hai” (allopathy is such a stupid science)”.
He also says that “lakhs of people have died after taking allopathic medicines,” the association said, adding that Ramdev claimed Remdesivir, Faviflu, and all other drugs, which were approved by the Drugs Controller General of India, have failed in treating the Covid patients.
“The Union health minister (Harsh Vardhan) who himself is a practicing modern medicine allopathic postgraduate and head of this (health) ministry, should either accept the challenge and accusation of this gentleman and dissolve the modern medical facility or boldly face and prosecute the person for his words of arson on the sovereignty of the country and book him under the Epidemic Act to save millions of people from such unscientific utterances,” the IMA said.
It alleged that Ramdev was trying to take advantage of the situation and create a sense of fear and frustration among the people at large.
He is doing this “so that he can sell his illegal and unapproved so-called medicines and make money at the cost of the public at large,” the association said.
The IMA said Ramdev deserved to be prosecuted for disobeying and causing danger to the life of many by making them believe to “not to take the advice of allopathy” doctors.
“The IMA demands and resolves if the minister (Harsh Vardhan) is not taking suo moto action we will be forced to resort to democratic means of struggle to propagate the truth to the common man and knock the doors of the judiciary to get due to justice,” it said.
Taking people to ransom and winning business by defaming scientific medicine are unpardonable offenses, the IMA said.
Citing Ramdev’s remarks it said such “untutored and unlearned” statements are a threat to society.
Maharashtra COVID-19 task force member and senior doctor Shashank Joshi on Saturday termed yoga guru’s comments on allopathy as “wrong and irresponsible.”
“It is wrong to make such irresponsible statements. Remdesivir helps in clinical recovery, but it is not a life- saving drug. It also does not affect any person (adversely). It is wrong to make such statements about allopathy,” Dr Joshi said.
(Manas Dasgupta)