After her allegations about the presence of human bones in medicines prepared at yoga guru Ramdev's pharmacy in Haridwar, CPI-M leader Brinda Karat on Tuesday accused the government of "tacitly approving" pesticides in soft drinks.
It was "unfortunate" that the Union Health Ministry had given a clean chit to PepsiCo and Coca-Cola, she said.
"In this way, tacit approval is being given to the alarmingly high presence of pesticides in these beverages, for which ultimately the people will have to pay with their health," she said.
Karat underscored the need to strengthen the consumer rights movement in the country, saying that "the people cannot be kept in the dark about articles they are purchasing".
Citing claims of a person expelled from Swami Ramdev's ashram, Karat had in 2005 alleged that ayurvedic medicines prepared at his Haridwar-based pharmacy contained traces of bones belonging to various animals and even humans.
The issue snowballed into a major controversy and leaders cutting across party lines had come out in support of yoga guru.