The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the alleged inter-State fake medicine manufacturing and distribution racket on Tuesday arrested its seventh accused, Balasubramanian, in Chennai, exposing another link in the network allegedly operated by the prime accused, Prashanth.
A team of officials arrested Balasubramanian in Chennai, allegedly following information obtained from Prashanth, who is currently in police custody.
Investigators suspect Balasubramanian was operating as the proprietor/director of a dummy company created to facilitate Prashanth’s network and the distribution of spurious medicines.
According to SIT sources, Balasubramanian allegedly received medicine consignments from Prashanth and Veeresh and supplied them in and around Chennai and other areas under his network.
Investigators are now examining the company’s transactions, movement of consignments, and the identities of other persons involved in the inter-State distribution chain.
“Information provided by Prashanth during interrogation helped investigators identify Balasubramanian and trace his role in the network,” an SIT source said.
More persons are suspected to be part of Prashanth’s network, and efforts are under way to identify and trace them, the source added.
The SIT is also probing the wider inter-State links of the racket, including the manner in which spurious medicines were procured, repackaged, and distributed through multiple entities.
Meanwhile, the SIT has turned its focus towards hospitals that purchased medicines from the accused and is examining the possible repercussions of the sale and use of the drugs.
Sources said the medicines allegedly supplied through the racket were sold to several hospitals in Bengaluru.
The hospitals have been issued notices seeking details and explanations regarding their purchases.
A dangerous dose of deception in Karnataka and beyond The SIT is examining whether the hospitals were aware of the nature and source of the medicines and whether any rules or mandatory procedures were violated while procuring the drugs.
Investigators are also looking into the circumstances under which the hospitals purchased the medicines at comparatively lower prices.
The Drugs Control Department has also sought the assistance of the Union government to examine measures to regulate and cap the prices of the medicines, sources said.
Distribution network The SIT is also expanding its probe into the distribution network, which is suspected to have spread beyond Karnataka to other States.
Investigators are tracing the supply chain to identify other dealers, distributors and purchasers linked to the racket.
Pharmaceutical companies have also been summoned for questioning to ascertain their possible role.
The SIT is also not ruling out the possibility of the accused, Prashanth, having an international network.
Investigators are examining his overseas connections and financial and business links to ascertain whether the racket had any international dimension.
Karnataka to track cancer patients after fake drug bust The SIT is also looking into the statements of the six accused persons arrested earlier in the case.
According to investigators, the accused have allegedly pointed to Prashanth as the person who supervised key aspects of the operation, including the procurement, distribution, and relabelling of the medicines.
Investigators are questioning Prashanth based on these statements as well as other evidence gathered during the probe.
They are seeking to establish how the alleged network operated, how tasks were assigned, and who was responsible for sourcing, repackaging, labelling, and distributing the medicines.
