PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
Uttarakhand Special Task force (STF) has arrested another member of a counterfeit medicine network from Zirakpur, Punjab. The accused, Pankaj Sharma, owns a medical store in Punjab and was arrested on Tuesday. He is accused of selling counterfeit medicines under the labels of reputed pharmaceutical companies, the senior superintendent of police of STF Navneet Singh Bhullar said.
In a Press conference in Dehradun on Wednesday, Bhullar informed that the police had earlier arrested four other individuals- Santosh Kumar, Naveen Bansal, Aditya Kala and Devi Dayal Gupta in the same case. The investigation was transferred to the STF after Kumar was found in possession of counterfeit medicine labels, wrappers and QR codes on June 1.
During questioning, Bansal disclosed that he supplied fake medicines to Sharma, who owns Noble Pharmacy/Life Sciences in Panchkula. Acting on this information, the STF team traced Sharma to his current residence in New Generation Apartment, Dhakoli, Zirakpur in Punjab and arrested him. According to the SSP, Sharma admitted that he bought counterfeit drugs from Bansal and others based in Rajasthan. “He distributed these medicines to various states, including Delhi, Noida, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan and also sold them through his own stores. He allegedly used a registered ambulance under the name of Noble Pharmacy to transport the medicines to avoid police and drug department checks. He also stated that he avoided paying taxes on these sales, resulting in high profits,” Bhullar said.
He informed that the STF is further investigating the network to identify other individuals and companies involved in the distribution and sale of counterfeit medicines. The STF is collecting details about Sharma’s criminal background from other states. The investigation is ongoing, he added.
