Allahabad HC Denies Bail in Phensedyl Diversion Case, Accused Directed to Surrender
Lucknow: The Allahabad High Court has refused to grant regular bail to two individuals accused in a case involving the alleged illegal storage and transportation of Phensedyl cough syrup, effectively cancelling the interim relief earlier granted to them and directing them to surrender.
The decision was delivered by Justice Karunesh Singh Pawar at the Lucknow bench while hearing separate bail petitions moved by Vibhor Rana and Vishal Singh. The duo had been given interim bail on December 18, 2025, but after examining the merits of the case, the court declined to extend regular bail.
During arguments, Additional Advocate General Anoop Trivedi opposed the applications, stating that law enforcement agencies had been receiving consistent intelligence inputs regarding the unlawful hoarding of Phensedyl and other regulated medicines. He informed the court that such codeine-based syrups were allegedly being diverted for misuse due to their intoxicating properties and transported to multiple states, including Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Assam, as well as across the border into Bangladesh.
The court was told that the Government of Uttar Pradesh had set up a joint task force on February 12, 2024, bringing together the Special Task Force (STF) and the Food Safety and Drug Administration (FDA) to investigate the suspected network. On April 8, 2024, the STF reportedly intercepted a truck on Sultanpur Road carrying 52 cartons of Phensedyl syrup that was allegedly headed to West Bengal. The truck driver, Dharmendra Kumar, during questioning, is said to have implicated Rana and Singh in the operation.
Investigators later arrested Rana and certain associates in Saharanpur on November 11, 2025. The prosecution maintained that the evidence collected so far establishes a prima facie link between the accused and the alleged offences, arguing that the gravity of the charges warranted denial of bail.
PTI reports that the case is part of a larger investigation into the illicit supply chain of codeine-based cough syrups, which authorities believe may involve transactions amounting to hundreds of crores of rupees.
The investigation remains underway, with enforcement agencies continuing efforts to trace the full extent of the alleged interstate and cross-border network involved in the illegal trade.
