The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has ordered a CBI enquiry into the supply of substandard medicines in Delhi government hospitals and whether the drugs were also distributed through Mohalla Clinics. The CBI probe was ordered following a recommendation by Delhi Lt Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena in December last year. The Delhi Government’s Directorate of Vigilance had written to the home ministry requesting the probe.

Launching a scathing attack on Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal after the MHA directed a CBI probe into the alleged procurement and supply of spurious and non-standard drugs, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva welcomed it and said he wanted to see how far the AAP convener can “run” from ongoing investigations.

“The probe will shed new light on the reasons why such low-quality medicines were supplied to government hospitals, thereby endangering the health of patients. It will also reveal the extent of kickbacks to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his cabinet colleagues. This scam amounts to playing with public health. It is shameful,” Sachdeva added.

Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj also welcomed the CBI enquiry into the alleged supply of substandard medicines to Delhi government-run hospitals and demanded the immediate suspension of the health department’s secretary. “I had given directions for carrying out an audit of medicines immediately after assuming office in March last year, but the (Delhi government) health secretary did not follow the directions. I welcome the CBI enquiry into the matter, but why is the Centre shielding the official? He should be immediately suspended,” Bharadwaj said.

Bharadwaj said that out of the “43 samples” collected from three hospitals, only five of them were declared “not of standard quality.”

At a press conference, he stated that in the official report, the terms “NSQ” or “not of standard quality” have been used many times, and it is “nowhere mentioned that the drugs are fake, imitation, poison, spurious.”

He added, “You cannot write it officially like that as it wasn’t so.”

In a note, Saxena mentioned that the drugs allegedly “failed quality standard tests” and had the “potential of endangering lives” in hospitals run by the Delhi government. The Delhi government’s Directorate of Vigilance had written to the home ministry requesting the probe.

The letter stated that any action for supplying ‘Not of Standard Quality’ drugs should not be confined to the CPA, and there is a need to investigate the entire supply chain — the role of the suppliers who procured from manufacturers and provided supply to the end-users, i.e., hospitals (patients). “Besides, there is a need to lift the corporate veil to understand the gravity and motives of supplying ‘Not of Standard Quality’ drugs,” read the Directorate of Vigilance letter.

The drugs found to be of “substandard quality” included critical life-saving antibiotics used for the treatment of lung and urinary tract infections, such as Cephalexin, according to officials.

The list also included a steroid, Dexamethasone, used for curing life-threatening inflammation in the lungs and joints, and swelling in the body, anti-epilepsy and anti-anxiety psychiatric drug Levetiracetam, and anti-hypertension drug Amlodepin, the officials said.

“In this context, it is not out of place to mention that the matter of ‘Mohalla Clinics’ was already entrusted to the CBI, and a Preliminary Enquiry (PE) was also registered...,” the communication read.

According to a vigilance department report submitted to the lieutenant governor, of the 43 samples of drugs sent to government laboratories, three failed the test, and 12 reports were pending. Furthermore, out of another 43 samples sent to private laboratories, five failed. Drugs such as Amlodipine, Levetiracetam, and Pantoprazole failed the test in both government and private laboratories. Cephalexin and Dexamethasone failed the test in private laboratories.

Delhi Minister Atishi on Friday accused the BJP-led Centre of trying to destroy the national capital’s “world-class” healthcare system by initiating fake inquiries. Atishi said at a press conference that the AAP dispensation’s mohalla clinic model has received praise worldwide.

“Mohalla clinics are a clean and well-maintained setup where medicines are given free to every person. The BJP-led Centre is trying to destroy Delhi’s world-class health model. How is it being done? By leveling false allegations and initiating fake inquiries,” she added. The minister said no inquiry has ever been refused.

“Every day inquiries are being initiated. We have never refused any inquiry. This inquiry is not being carried out to investigate corruption but to ensure that officers are scared and fear is instilled in medical superintendents of hospitals,” she said.

“It also needs to be investigated whether the same drugs which have been procured by the Central Procurement Agency (CPA) are also being distributed to the patients through the ‘Mohalla Clinics’ or not,” read the communication by the Department of Vigilance to MHA. Atishi alleged that these inquiries will scare officers now and reiterated that it is the BJP’s conspiracy to stop them from working.