Three people arrested in GGM Sector 39 for counterfeit arthritis drugs

Haryana authorities raided a pharmacy and a house in Gurugram's Sector 39 on Wednesday and seized over 1,000 boxes of fake medicines, officials familiar with the case said, adding that they had arrested three people in connection with the case.

Officials said the fake drug was Tofajak, which is used to treat arthritis and is manufactured by pharmaceutical giant Cipla. A Cipla representative said the seized boxes – each containing 60 tablets – would be sent to their laboratory to analyze what materials were used to make the fake drug.

The raids, carried out by the Prime Minister's Task Force, State Drugs Control Authority and Sector 40 Crime Branch, came after authorities received a tip-off that Mohammadia Pharmacy in Sector 39 was selling fake medicines, police said.

During searches at the pharmacy, officials seized 50 boxes of Tofajak. When shop owner Yusuf Wasi was asked to produce valid bills for the same, he was unable to produce any receipts, according to police. At this point, they said, Cipla's director of corporate affairs Rahul Vij was called to the spot, who confirmed that the medicines were indeed fake.

“When we examined the counterfeit boxes, it was immediately clear that the packaging quality was poor. There was a significant difference between the original product and the counterfeit boxes in terms of the codes that we are checking. We will send the seized packs to our laboratory to analyze what materials were used for the drugs,” Vij said.

According to police, during interrogation, Yusuf admitted that he had received the fake medicines from Naseem (identified only by one name), who lived in a rented house in Sector 39. Raids on his house recovered another 964 boxes of the fake medicine. The role of Zubair Mohammad of Nuh, who had helped Naseem in distributing the fake medicines, was also revealed.

According to police, Naseem supplied the drugs for ₹500 per box, which were then sold to pharmacies for ₹690, and finally resold to customers for ₹900. The actual market price of the drug is ₹1,200 per box.

All three suspects were arrested and charged under several sections of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. Yusuf and Naseem were remanded in police custody for five days while Zubair was remanded in Bhondsi jail. Moreover, the Drugs Control Authority has sealed the pharmacy and is in the process of cancelling its license.

Amandeep Chauhan, drug enforcement officer in Gurugram, said there were still several unanswered questions that were being investigated. “One of the biggest concerns is how the gang managed to copy Cipla's bar code. This raises the possibility of insiders being involved in the pharmaceutical industry,” he said.