Fish Extract in Vegetarian Product? HC Seeks Centre's Reply as Patanjali Accused of Misbranding

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Friday sought the Centre's stand on a petition seeking action against the alleged misbranding of Patanjali's "Divya Dant Manjan" as a vegetarian product. The petitioner's counsel claimed that though the dental care product was being sold with a "green dot", symbolising that it was a vegetarian commodity, it contained fish extract, a non-vegetarian ingredient.

Justice Sanjeev Narula issued notice to the Centre, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) as well as Patanjali, Divya Pharmacy, Yoga guru Ramdev and other related parties on the petition by lawyer Yatin Sharma.

The law does not mandate declaration of a "drug" as vegetarian or non-vegetarian but the packaging of "Divya Dant Manjan" wrongly carries a "green dot", which qualifies as "misbranding" under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, the petitioner's counsel argued. The matter would be heard next in November.

Represented by advocates Swapnil Chaudhary and Prashant Gupta, the petitioner stated that the product contains “samudraphen (sepia officinalis)”, which is derived from fish extract.

The petitioner claimed that this discovery was "distressing" for him and his family which consumes only vegetarian ingredients/products on account of religious beliefs and sentiments.

The petitioner asserted there was a need to address the lapse on the part of the authorities in taking appropriate action against those responsible for the production and promotion of "Divya Dant Manjan" in its present form.

"Respondent No. 3 (Patanjali Ayurveda) is selling the same product with a green dot on their official website, indicating that the product is vegetarian in nature, which is contradictory.

"The Petitioner seeks redressal for the profound distress caused by the inadvertent consumption of a non-vegetarian product, emphasizing the importance of upholding religious beliefs and ensuring transparency in product representation," the petition, filed through lawyers Mohit Solanki and Pulkit Chaudhary, stated.