Police bust interstate spurious medicines racket, arrest 6
The Delhi Police has busted an organised interstate racket involved in manufacturing and supplying spurious life-saving medicines, arresting six persons and seizing counterfeit drugs worth around Rs 2 crore.
During the operation, the police also exposed a network of fake GST firms used to generate bogus invoices and launder proceeds of the illegal trade, with investigators estimating the fake billing to the tune of nearly Rs 50 crore.
According to the police, the racket was engaged in large-scale manufacturing, storage and distribution of counterfeit Schedule-H drugs, which are commonly prescribed for ailments such as diabetes, hypertension, and liver disorders, posing a serious risk to public health.
The accused have been identified as Nikhil Arora alias Sunny, a wholesale medicine dealer based in Shahdara, Shivam Tyagi and Mayank Aggarwal, both suppliers from Uttar Pradesh, Mohit Kumar Sharma, a key supplier from Uttarakhand, and Shahrukh and Rahul, who allegedly operated fake GST firms to facilitate the illegal trade.
“The case came to light following specific inputs, after which a raid was conducted on March 11 in Bihari Colony in Shahdara. During the operation, Arora, who ran a wholesale medical shop in Bhagirathi Palace, was apprehended,” a senior police officer said.
He said that over 1.2 lakh counterfeit tablets and capsules were recovered during the raid, including fake versions of widely used medicines such as Rabemac-DSR, Telma-AM, Sporolac-DS, Signoflam, Chymoral Forte, Ursocol-300, Gluconorm, Jalra-50 and several others.
These medicines are frequently prescribed and consumed by patients suffering from chronic illnesses, the officer said.
“The circulation of counterfeit drugs of this nature can have severe and potentially fatal consequences,” he added.
Further investigation revealed that the accused had developed a modus operandi to evade detection. The counterfeit medicines were supplied using fake invoices generated through fictitious GST firms that existed only on paper. All these shell entities were created to conceal the actual nature of business operations, evade tax scrutiny and lend a semblance of legitimacy to illegal transactions, the officer said.
“The financial trail was deliberately routed through these fake firms to mask both the origin and destination of the spurious medicines,” the officer said.
Shahrukh and Rahul were found to be key players in this aspect of the operation. They allegedly operated the fake GST network using encrypted communication platforms, supplying ready-made firms and bogus billing services to clients across multiple states.
Analysis of their mobile phones revealed details of numerous shell companies and fake invoices amounting to approximately Rs 50 crore, along with links to several beneficiaries.
During the entire investigation, a team traced the supply chain to an illegal pharmaceutical manufacturing unit in Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh. The unit, spread across nearly 1,000 square yards, was allegedly being operated by one Mohammad Aqdas Siddiqui, who is currently absconding.
A raid conducted at the facility led to the recovery of around 2,000 kg of raw materials used in drug manufacturing, including Metformin HCL, calcium carbonate, lactose, starch and magnesium stearate.
Police also seized advanced machinery such as tablet compression machines, coating units, capsule filling machines, blister packaging systems and even testing equipment, indicating the scale and sophistication of the operation.
“Additionally, 10,000 empty bottles falsely labelled as products of reputed pharmaceutical companies, along with packaging material and printing sets of branded medicines, were recovered from the site,” the officer said.
The premises involved in the storage and sale of these drugs had no valid licence, and the medicines were not sourced from legitimate distributors.
During interrogation, the accused disclosed a multi-layered supply chain involving illegal manufacturers, distributors and GST operators working in tandem across different states.
“Police records show that one of the accused, Mayank Aggarwal, has prior involvement in cases registered by the Narcotics Control Bureau as well as a recent FIR in Uttar Pradesh under provisions related to drugs and cosmetics violations,” the officer said, adding that further investigation into the matter is underway.
