[18] According to a report by India Infoline (IIFL), at least 13 listed companies would be affected by Patanjali's success; they included Hindustan Unilever, Colgate, Dabur, ITC, and Godrej Consumer Products.

[20][25][26] In 2016, the Patanjali Food and Herbal Park received 35 full-time, armed Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) commandos.

[35] In September 2017, the Delhi High Court ordered the company to stop airing an advertisement for its brand of chyavanprash which disparaged a competitor's.

[38][40] Patanjali has been cited for its working conditions; Ramdev and Balkrishna are treated as gurus whose feet must be touched each time they enter an area.

[41][42][43] On 22 May 2021, the Indian Medical Association (IMA) in Uttarakhand sent a defamation notice of ₹1,000 crore (equivalent to ₹11 billion or US$130 million in 2023) after remarks by Ramdev about doctors who practise evidence-based medicine.

Some Patanjali Pharmacy stores sold the drug with the claim that it would ensure the birth of a boy, reportedly leading to an increase in sales.

[46] The issue was raised in the Indian Parliament in July 2015 by opposition members who accused Ramdev of "peddling a product which promised delivery of male children."

[59] Ministry of AYUSH has advised certain states to take necessary action against Baba Ramdev's Patanjali Ayurved for illegally promoting products that claimed to cure diabetes, heart and liver diseases.

[60][61][62] Patanjali Ayurved announced a drug named Coronil for COVID-19 treatment in June 2020, with Ramdev claiming that it cured the disease.

[63][64][11] There was no clinical data to prove that the new drug was effective or even safe; this prompted a social-media backlash which questioned the role of the Ministry of AYUSH.

[65] Within hours of Coronil's introduction, the ministry issued a statement denying authorisation for the new drug and asking the company to stop selling (and advertising) it until the trial results were examined by medical authorities.

First information reports were filed in Bihar and Rajasthan against Ramdev, Balkrishna and others, accusing them of dishonesty and selling fake medicines.

Making an earlier interim injunction against Patanjali absolute, Madras High Court Justice C. V. Karthikeyan also imposed the fine on the company.

[80][81] In February 2021, The Indian Express, The Times of India, The Hindu and Livemint reported Patanjali Ayurved's claim that Coronil had been approved by the Ministry of AYUSH and certified by the World Health Organization.

[89][90][86][91] Patanjali Ayurveda CEO Balkrishna admitted on Twitter that the approval for Coronil had not come from the WHO or the Ministry of AYUSH (as they had claimed), but had been granted by the Drugs Controller General of India for export – not as a certification of effectiveness.

[86][89] In August 2022, Newslaundry published a report alleging that Patanjali took control of Dalits' lands for cow shelter and herb farms in Teliwala village, Uttarkhand through force and circumvention of laws, making people there landless.

Subsequently, in November 2023, the Supreme Court cautioned Patanjali against misleading advertisements and threatened a fine of Rs 1 crore per product for any deceptive claims.

[94][95] In February 2024, the Supreme Court imposed a temporary ban on the company's advertisements and issued a contempt notice to Patanjali and its managing director Balkrishna.

[96][97] In August 2024, the Supreme Court closed contempt proceedings against Patanjali Ayurved co-founders Baba Ramdev and Acharya Balkrishna, and their company in the misleading advertisements case, accepting the apology tendered by the parties after they took steps to rectify their mistake.