Activists of KRV staged a protest outside Viva Pharma on Club Road on Tuesday.
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Nagaraj S, district officer, FSDA, who visited the protest site, said the SIT probe had intensified and efforts were under way to trace the supply chain, identify all those involved and seize counterfeit medicines. Police maintained security during the protest. Download the TOI App.
Investigators suspect an illegal network sourced medicines from other states at low prices, affixed fake labels of reputed pharmaceutical companies and sold them across the state at inflated rates. The probe covers several districts, including Belagavi, Bagalkot, Vijayapura, Hubballi and Dharwad. KRV activists gathered outside Viva Pharma’s office, raising slogans and expressing anger over the delay in arresting those allegedly involved. They argued that merely suspending licences was inadequate and demanded stringent action. KRV district president Deepak Gudaganatti alleged that public health was being put at risk and questioned why no arrests had been made so far.
The protest follows action by the Food Safety and Drugs Administration (FSDA), which cancelled the licences of 16 pharma dealers and suspended eight others across Karnataka, including Belagavi-based Viva Pharma, over their alleged role in the distribution and sale of counterfeit medicines. Protesters accused authorities of failing to take criminal action despite the widening investigation. He also demanded that the investigation be handed over to the CBI or CID to uncover the entire network.
Belagavi : Activists of the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) staged a protest outside Viva Pharma on Club Road on Tuesday, demanding the arrest of owner Harshvardhan Inchal and a CBI probe into the alleged spurious drugs racket.