Saturday, May 4

Patanjali Publishes “Stamp-Size” Apology In Newspapers; Social Media Reacts

Edited by Aishwarya Krishnan
Patanjali Publishes “Stamp-Size” Apology In Newspapers; Social Media Criticises

Following the Supreme Court’s order to Patanjali to publicly apologise for publishing misleading advertisements, the multinational conglomerate printed an apology in several leading newspapers. However, social media has been quick to criticise it for its “stamp-size” apology.

Printed in a corner of a page in a small box, the apology reads, “Patanjali Ayurveda fully respects the dignity of the Honourable Supreme Court. We sincerely apologise for the mistake made by our lawyer in publishing the advertisement and holding the press conference even after making the statement before the Supreme Court, and we have a commitment that this mistake will not be repeated. We assure you again that we will remain fully committed to maintaining the dignity of the Constitution and the Honourable Supreme Court.”

With the “stamp-size apology” published in many newspapers, criticism has poured in, with many urging the top court to take action against the firm and order a full-page apology instead. An X (formerly known as Twitter) user highlighted that the apology did not come from the contemnors: Ramdev and Balakrishna.

The Court had given a week’s time to co-founders Baba Ramdev and Managing Director Acharya Balakrishna to publish a public apology. The bench, comprising Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah, presided over the contempt case against Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. The Court has previously rejected two apology affidavits from the Patanjali MD for being unqualified.