A day after the Indian Medical Association urged the Union Health Ministry to take action against Yoga guru Ramdev over his comments that “lakhs had died after taking allopathy medicines”, Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust said that Ramdev had the utmost regard for doctors and carried no ill will against modern science and medicine.
In a signed statement dated 24 May, the trust’s General Secretary Acharya Balakrishna said that Ramdev was merely reading out a WhatsApp forward received by him while adding that a “truncated version of the video” that has gone viral is totally out of context.
“Swami ji has no ill-will against modern science and good practitioners of modern medicine. What is being attributed to him is false and nugatory.”Statement from Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust.
Reading from his mobile in a video that has now gone viral, Ramdev could be heard saying, “Allopathy is such a stupid science that first chloroquine failed; then Remdesivir failed; then anti-biotics failed; then steroids failed; then plasma therapy was banned.”
The Yoga guru then went on to claim that no medicine was working against fever as the drugs were only reducing the temperature, but were not treating the virus or bacteria causing it.
Book Ramdev: IMA Statement
Following the video, the IMA, without naming the yoga guru had said that some were attacking healthcare workers with the intent of boosting their “unprincipled, deceitful, and unpatriotic business fortunes”.
The IMA said that both Ramdev and his associate Balakrishna had received treatment at modern healthcare facilities whenever they fell sick, even though they had routinely spoken ill of modern medicine and its practitioners.
The statement said that since Ramdev had challenged Remdesivir and Fabiflu – both approved by the DGCI – he “deserves to be prospected for disobeying” and causing danger to to lives by creating a false impressing of allopathy in the minds of people.
The IMA asked in its statement that by challenging time-tested institutions, like ICMR and DCGG, and health issued by the Ministry of Health, did such revered individuals an anti-national act?
Further, the IMA asked the Health Minister to either “accept the challenge and accusations of this gentleman and dissolve modern medical facilities or boldly face and prosecute the person for his words of arson on the sovereignty of the country”.
DMA Files Police Complaint Against Ramdev
The Delhi Medical Association (DMA) on Saturday, 22 May, registered a police complaint against Ramdev for describing modern medicine as "stupid science".
The DMA submitted a statement along with the complaint.
“At this time of crisis, the whole country is battling the pandemic, risking their own and families’ lives with whatever resources are available. Baba Ramdev has assaulted medical science and the medical profession apparently for personal gains.”Delhi Medical Association
The complaint was filed at the Daryaganj Police Station in the national capital.
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