Major Arrest in Bengalurus Fake Drug Case as Key Suspect Detained at Airport

Bengaluru, September 28 (Daily Kiran) : A significant breakthrough occurred in the investigation of a counterfeit drug operation in Bengaluru when the Special Investigation Team (SIT) apprehended the main suspect, Prashant Ranjan Babu, at Kempegowda International Airport on Monday. Babu had just returned to India from Azerbaijan.

Authorities revealed that following the exposure of the counterfeit drug network, Babu fled to Azerbaijan. However, under pressure from the SIT, he returned to India, where he was taken into custody upon his arrival at the airport.

The SIT plans to present Babu in court on Monday and may request his custody for further questioning. Investigators are delving into the extent of the counterfeit drug network, including the locations where these drugs were allegedly manufactured and distributed, as well as the duration of the operation.

Interrogating Babu is expected to yield more information about the network and others involved in the production and distribution of fake medications.

Notably, a major scam involving counterfeit medicines was uncovered in Bengaluru, with over ₹5 crores worth of fake, expired, and relabeled life-saving drugs, including those for ICU and cancer patients, seized. The SIT has already arrested a local pharmacy owner and discovered that this illegal network supplied substandard medicines to over 90 hospitals and clinics.

Subsequently, the SIT conducted raids in Karnataka, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Maharashtra. The Karnataka Food Safety and Drug Administration (FDA) has revoked 16 drug licenses linked to the scam and suspended eight others, including a C&F (Carrying and Forwarding) depot for Pfizer.

Karnataka’s Health Minister U.T. Khader noted that the agency failed to cooperate with investigators or provide necessary reference standards for laboratory testing of the seized counterfeit drugs.

Given that fake medications intended for cancer and serious illnesses were distributed, the health department is working to identify affected patients and assess their health status.

Authorities are urging the public to carefully examine labels for suspicious packaging and report any unscannable QR codes directly to drug enforcement officials.

In a related operation, the SIT and the Drugs Control Department arrested Veeresh Kumar Jain, the owner of a pharmacy in Bengaluru, and confiscated counterfeit drugs valued at over ₹5 crores.