People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), the Kochi based NGO, will write to the drug control administrations of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh apprising them of the Kerala High Court verdict of June 27 this year directing Kunnath Pharmaceuticals of Kerala to stop giving advertisements about their drug Musli Power Xtra in any media.

Further, the NGO will request the Drug Control General of India (DCGI) to initiate strict action against the company if it violates the court order, anywhere in the country, said Jacob Lazer, an office-bearer of PUCL.

According to the NGO, the company has not taken away the brochures and sign boards it put up in the public places and state transport service buses in Tamil Nadu even after one month of the judgement, which is not restricted to Kerala only. The court has ordered the manufacturer not to publish any kind of advertisement about the drug in any media, and it should be ensured that all hoardings put up by it directly or through his authorized dealers, stockists or agents are removed from all public places within two weeks from the day of the judgement. But in Chennai, many of the metropolitan buses carry the sign boards of Musli Power Xtra.

PUCL has in its petition requested the court to issue an order restraining the manufacturer of Musli Power Xtra from publishing any sort of advertisement, brochures, sign boards, hoardings, pamphlets and press releases claiming cure for sexual disorders. Its contention was that the advertisements are violation of drugs and magic remedies (objectionable advertisement) act, 1954. It said the advertisement of the company has exhorted the people with sexual disorders for self medication and claimed that its drug is a magical solution for all disorders of sex related problems.

While issuing the order, the court maintained that it could not ignore the contentions raised by the NGO questioning the credibility and effectiveness of the drug. In view of the serious complaints or allegations against the drug, the court ordered the authorities to send the drug for analytical tests to the central drug testing laboratory in Ghaziabad within one month of the judgement. The government should take a decision in the matter with in two months from the date of receipt of the test report, says the court order.