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| A still of Dr Pankaj Naram - cancer cure claims questioned (video below) |
On 30th July, the British media widely reported that their media watchdog Ofcom fined Lamhe Channel of Zee Network UK (owned by Asia TV Limited) 25,000 pounds.
This was in response to Lamhe airing the 'Yoga for You' programme by Dr. Pankaj Naram in June 2014, in which he claimed that '11 holy basil leaves and three black peppers' could prevent cancer.
Also key to Ofcom's decision was Dr. Pankaj Naram's claim that he had 75,000 cancer patients, who had been given only two to three months to live by famous hospitals worldwide 15 years ago, still living and healthy following his treatment.
Dr. Pankaj Naram claims to unlock ancient Indian secrets to offer miracle cure for a wide range of ailments.
Ofcom noted that Dr Naram's medical advice that his ayurvedic products could be used to successfully treat cancer and hernia conditions was damaging since some ayurvedic products had a potential to be toxic; and there was no evidence that they could prevent, treat or cure cancer.
It then ruled that such claims could convince those suffering from cancer to delay or forego their treatments and fined Zee Network.
The NewsMinute highlighted Zee's response to the regulator that the programme actually aimed at Indian audience was mistakenly broadcast in the UK due to human error. And raised an important question about why this, having dual standards, was justified.
Zee Network's claim that the programme was only for Indian audience does appear to suggest that it is okay to endorse and promote unproven ayurvedic products against serious ailments in India
While only Zee Network can respond to this particular issue with more clarity, it appears that the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) could be an important stakeholder, considering that it regulates advertisements including those related to health care products and services.
In May 2014, ASCI found 80 advertisements related to health and personal care products and services to be false or misleading or not adequately/scientifically substantiated and in violation of the ASCI Code. Twenty of these were related to ayurvedic, herbal and traditional medicine and services.