Mumbai: In a significant move, the Maharashtra Government has decided that sale of Coronil produced by Patanjali Ayurved will not be allowed without proper certification from a competent health organisation like the World Health Organisation (WHO) or the Indian Medical Association. This was announced by Home Minister Anil Deshmukh who, in a tweet, attacked Baba Ramdev saying that launching such a drug hurriedly and it being endorsed by two senior Central Ministers was highly deplorable.
‘’The IMA has questioned the said clinical trials of Coronil and WHO has refuted the false claims made by Patanjali Ayurved that it had certified its effectiveness for COVID 19 treatment,’’ Deshmukh said in a tweet.
In another tweet, he added, ''Launching such a drug hurriedly and it being endorsed by two senior central ministers is highly deplorable. Sale of Coronil without proper certification from competent health organisations like WHO, IMA and others will not be allowed in Maharashtra.’’
Deshmukh’s announcement came days after Patanjali Ayurved’s drug received certification from the Government of India’s Ayush Ministry. This is seen as a major snub to Baba Ramdev, who is known for his proximity to the BJP.
WHO has come out with a strong clarification, stating that it has not reviewed or certified any traditional medicine for treatment or prevention of COVID-19.
Further, the IMA said that claims made by Baba Ramdev about Coronil getting Drugs Controller General of India's approval and WHO certification were completely false. ‘’A physician shall not recommend or endorse any medicine or drug with his name, signature, or photograph in any form,” said IMA.
The IMA said that it will write to the National Medical Commission for blatant violation of the code of conduct set by the Medical Council of India. Further, IMA has slammed Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan for endorsing Patanjali’s Coronil and questioned his ethics as a physician and health minister of the country for making an appearance at the launch event of an unscientific medicine.
This was not the first time that the NCP and the Congress have targeted Baba Ramdev. They had attacked the BJP-led government after it allotted land in December 2017 to Baba Ramdev in MIHAN project area in Nagpur at a paltry price. However, the BJP government had strongly defended the decision, saying that the land was given in a transparent manner.
