Hyderabad-based paediatrician Sivaranjani Santosh has resigned from the Indian Academy of Paediatrics (IAP), citing a lack of institutional support after she received a legal notice from pharmaceutical companies over her public remarks questioning certain oral rehydration products.
Dr. Santosh, who had criticised the marketing and positioning of products such as ORSL and its rebranded version ERZL, said her decision to step down followed the Academy’s failure to stand by her. “I decided enough is enough,” she told The Hindu, adding that she resigned a few days ago.
With a membership exceeding 47,000, the IAP is the country’s largest body representing paediatricians.
The controversy centres on a legal notice sent to her by companies including Kenvue and Johnson & Johnson, which accused her of making false, misleading, disparaging and defamatory statements about their products. Dr. Santosh has maintained that her comments were aimed at raising awareness about the indiscriminate use of electrolyte drinks in children, particularly their routine use as daily hydration products.
She alleged that the IAP neither condemned the legal notice nor publicly supported her despite her representations. Instead, she said, the academy issued a position statement on oral rehydration solutions (ORS), a move she questioned. “Why release a statement on ORS now, when it has been in use for decades?” she asked, suggesting that the timing and content raised concerns about conflict of interest.
