Ramdev withdraws statement on allopathy after Harsh Vardhan's letter

Yoga guru Baba Ramdev on Sunday withdrew his statements on allopathic medicine that had triggered an outcry among the medical fraternity.

Responding to a letter from Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan, in which he reprimanded the yoga guru for his “objectionable and unfortunate” comments, Ramdev said he wants to put the matter to rest.

"Hon’ble Minister, I have received your letter. I withdraw my statement, putting to rest the controversy over various medical practices," Ramdev tweeted.

Earlier, Vardhan rebuked Ramdev for his comments. “The people of the country are very hurt by your remark on allopathic medicines. I have already talked to you about this feeling over the phone,” Vardhan said in a two-page letter written in Hindi.

“Your clarification is not enough to make up for it. I hope you will think hard about it and withdraw your statements completely," the minister wrote.

The Indian Medical Association had flagged a Ramdev video to Vardhan, in which the yoga guru is heard saying: “Allopathy ek aisi stupid aur diwalia science hai (Allopathy is such a stupid and bankrupt science)."

Also read: Union health minister asks Ramdev to withdraw statement on allopathic medicines

Besides IMA, several other medical associations lodged protests against Ramdev. While IMA and the Federation of All India Medical Association served legal notices to Ramdev for his baseless accusations, the Delhi Medical Association filed a police complaint against the yoga practitioner.

In his letter, Vardhan said, “Your statement on allopathy can break the morale of healthcare workers and weaken our fight against Covid-19. Vaccine is an important weapon against corona and it came from allopathy.”

(With inputs from PTI)