A Kerala based social organization, ‘People’s Union for Civil Liberties ‘ (PUCL) has filed a Writ Petition (WP.(C) No. 37511 of 2009 ) with the High Court of Kerala against Kunnath Pharmaceuticals, the manufacturer of an aphrodisiac product ‘Musli Power Xtra’ for violation of the provisions of Drugs and Magical Remedies (Objectionable Advertisement ) Act, 1954.

The petitioner has informed the court that the drug manufactured, advertised and sold by Kunnath Pharmaceuticals is not a remedy for the physical disorders and diseases of men as claimed by the Company, and clarified that the company has been violating the provisions of Drugs and Cosmetics Act and the Rules also.

The company is carrying major advertisement campaign in print and electronic media claiming its product Musli Power Xtra is a remedy for sexual disabilities or ailments such as erectile dysfunction, infertility, sterility and impotency. In the affidavit, the petitioner said no drug could be advertised or sold claiming to cure these diseases in the light of the provisions of the D&C Act and D&MR Act. It further said the blatant violation of law by the manufacturer of the product tends to make more and more people indulge in self medication which is exactly what the DMR Act is intended to curb.

According to the petitioner, the drug manufactured and marketed by Kunnath Pharmaceuticals comes under the definition of ‘drug’ in the DMR Act. Section 3 of the Act prohibits advertisement of drugs claiming to be the treatment for certain diseases and disorders. The Act says that advertisements denoting or indicating cures for impotency and sterility in women cannot not be made. But the manufacturer is giving advertisements mentioning these two diseases in newspapers and TV channels at national level even hiring Bollywood actors, PUCL mentioned in the affidavit.

Further the petitioner informed the court that according to its investigation it was found that the concerned authorities were already aware of these violations and that except taking some name-sake legal steps against the company, nothing concrete or no stringent action was taken in this regard. The Organization further stated that though complaints were pending before the courts, the manufacturing company has been carrying on its illegal business activity on a war-footing basis only because the statutory authorities were showing leniency to it. It said, after the raids conducted by the regulatory authorities in the premises of Kunnath Pharmaceuticals and submission of the seized documents before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Moovattupuzha on 15.10.2009 that the manufacturing and advertising activities increased manifold. According to the petitioner, both the print and electronic media which compete to get advertisements from the Company chose to remain silent about the raids.

The PUCL has prayed to the court to issue a writ of mandamus directing the Health Secretary of the State and the Drugs Controller and Licensing Authority of Kerala, the one and two respondents in the case, to take appropriate steps to stop the advertisements on Musli Power Xtra. The Social Organization’s another prayer is for a writ of mandamus from the court directing the 1&2 respondents to ban the drug, manufactured, publicized, and marketed by Kunnath Pharmaceuticals, from the market in India and abroad.

The petitioner has also prayed to the court that there should be a directive from the court to the Director of Vigilance & Anti-Corruption Bureau, Thiruvananthapuram to conduct an investigation on the academic credentials and qualifications of the Managing Director of the company.

The petitioner has mentioned that the Managing Director of the Company always uses two alphabets “ MD “along with his name which is suggestive of a medical degree. He wears the name as ‘ Dr. KC Abraham, MD’. The investigation conducted by PUCL reveals that KC Abraham had informed the authority that ‘MD” stands for Managing Director and that he possesses a Doctor of Management in value addition of Traditional Herbs from the University of Maryland in the year 2006. In the affidavit it is clarified that by wearing a name with a degree in the advertisement is clearly to give the impression to the public that he is a medically qualified person qualified and competent to prescribe medicines for human ailments.