Shark Tank India judge and Emcure Pharmaceuticals executive director Namita Thapar has slammed yoga guru Ramdev for his "sharbat jihad" remark while promoting juices manufactured by his company, Patanjali. Thapar called the move "hate marketing" and lauded Rooh Afza, Hamdard’s popular drink that Ramdev alluded to in his comments, for their "class act" in response.
Taking to X, Thapar shared two pictures, one was a news article highlighting Ramdev's remark about a certain beverage company building mosques out of their revenue, and the other was a Rooh Afza advertisement that promoted unity and harmony across different faiths.
"Hate marketing vs a class act. What is the India we want to create for our kids?" Thapar wrote.
On April 3, Ramdev's controversial video was shared by ‘Patanjali Products’ on Facebook with a caption in Hindi that stated: “Protect your family and innocent children from the poison of toilet cleaners being sold in the name of soft drinks and 'sharbat jihad'. Bring home only Patanjali Sharbat and Juices.”
“In the name of quenching thirst during summers, people drink cold beverages that are basically toilet cleaners. On one side, there’s the attack of toilet-cleaner-like poison, and on the other, there’s a company selling sharbat, which uses the money earned from it to build mosques and madrasas. That’s fine, it’s their religion," the yoga guru said in the video.
"But if you drink that sharbat, it supports the construction of mosques and madrasas. On the other hand, if you drink Patanjali’s rose sharbat, it supports the setting up of Gurukuls, Acharyakulam, Patanjali University, and the Bharatiya Shiksha Board. That’s why I say, just like there is love jihad and vote jihad, there is also sharbat jihad. So, you must protect yourself from this sharbat jihad."
On Tuesday, the Delhi High Court pulled up Ramdev for his comment. “It shocks the conscience of the court. This is indefensible,” Justice Amit Bansal said while hearing Hamdard's suit against him.
The company accused Ramdev of making defamatory and communal statements targeting its product.
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