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Watchdog raps Patanjali for ‘misleading’ advertisements

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Vijay C Roy

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Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 4

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Yoga guru Ramdev’s Patanjali Ayurved Ltd. has come under the scanner of advertising industry watchdog — Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) — for several misleading advertisements. Patanjali drew flak for advertisements of toothpaste, mustard oil, fruit juice and cattle feed.

Patanjali’s Dant Kanti’s (toothpaste), claim, “effective against pyorrhoea, swelling and bleeding of gums, yellowing of teeth, sensitivity and bad breath” and “protects your teeth for a longer time and provides a natural shield against germs”, were not substantiated and are misleading,” said the ASCI.

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The company’s kachi ghani mustard oil claim, “mustard oils are being adulterated with oil made by solvent-extraction process with neurotoxin containing hexane,” was not substantiated.

Similarly, for its fruit juice claim in the advertisement (in Gujarati) as translated into English, “Will you make the mistake of drinking expensive juices containing less pulp or will you drink cheap and good Patanjali fruit juices which are full of pulp to become healthy and to save money” accompanied by reference to the prices of other branded juices, denigrates the entire class/category of fruit juices. These claims were also not substantiated adequately and are misleading, the ASCI said.

Patanjali’s cattle feed “Dugdhamrut’s” claims in the advertisement (in Hindi) as translated into English state “Infertility is increasing in cattle”, “Cattle is being butchered.” “Other companies mix up 3-4% urea and other non-edible things in their cattle feed” and “Patanjali Gaushala’s cow that gives 25 litres of milk, were not substantiated and were misleading.

The ASCI also found misleading advertisements of Uber India, Nissan Motors, Apollo Tyres, Whirpool India, Idea Cellular, Aircel, Reliance Jio, Suzuki Motorcycle and Tata Motors etc.

“In April 2016, the ASCI’s Consumer Complaints Council upheld complaints against 67 out of 141 advertisements,” said Shweta Purandare, secretary general, ASCI.

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