FIR Against Ramdev For Spreading False Information On Covid

FILE PHOTO: Yoga guru Baba Ramdev gestures as he addresses the media during a news conference

Police in Chhattisgarh’s Raipur have registered an FIR against Baba Ramdev for allegedly spreading “false” information about the medicines being used by the medical fraternity for the treatment of COVID-19, a police official said on Thursday.

The case was filed on Wednesday night against Ramkrishna Yadav alias Baba Ramdev based on a complaint filed by the Chhattisgarh unit of the Indian Medical Association (IMA), Raipur’s Senior Superintendent of Police Ajay Yadav said.

Ramdev has been booked under sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) and others of the IPC and provisions of Disaster Management Act, 2005, he said.

Further investigation into the matter is underway, he added.

Chairman of Hospital Board IMA (CG) Dr. Rakesh Gupta, IMA’s Raipur President and Vikas Agrawal were among doctors who had earlier lodged the complaint.

As per the complaint, since over the last one year, Ramdev has been allegedly propagating false information on social media against medicines being used by the medical fraternity, Government of India, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and other frontline organisations in the treatment of coronavirus infection.

There are several videos of him on social media in which he had allegedly made such misleading remarks, it said.

At a time when doctors, paramedical staff and all branches of government and administration have been together battling COVID-19, Ramdev has been allegedly misleading people about established and approved treatment methods, the complaint said.

Ramdev’s remarks on modern medical facilities and allopathy medicines, which have been curing over 90 percent of the patients, would put the lives of people in danger, it alleged.

“During the investigation of the complaint, it was found that his statements amount to violation of the notification of the Chhattisgarh government dated March 13 last year,” the official said.

The notification states that no person/institution/organisation will use any print or electronic media for information regarding COVID-19 without prior permission of the state’s Health Department. This is to avoid spread of any rumour or unauthenticated information regarding COVID-19.