Kingpin behind spurious Betnovate-C ointment racket arrested

In the latest development in a major spurious drugs and fake cosmetics case, Delhi Police has arrested the alleged mastermind of the racket, officials said.

The accused, Pramod Kumar Gupta, 67 year old was arrested from Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station on December 16.

Two other accused—Gaurav Bhagat, a resident of Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, and Shree Ram from Sabhapur in northeast Delhi—were arrested in the case.

Earlier, as reported by Medical Dialogues, the Delhi Police Crime Branch had busted a major inter-state racket allegedly involved in the manufacture, repackaging and nationwide sale of spurious Schedule-H drugs, seizing counterfeit medicines and raw materials worth over Rs 2.3 crore

Gupta allegedly ran an illegal manufacturing unit, which produced spurious Betnovate-C ointment and fake cosmetic products, including Fair and Lovely and Veet creams, police said.

A case was registered under the relevant provisions of the BNS and the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, the officer said.

While in custody, Shree Ram disclosed Gupta’s role as the supplier and key conspirator behind the racket, the officer said.

Acting on the lead, police raided an illegal manufacturing unit operated from a rented farmhouse at Bijwasan village in southwest Delhi, PTI reported.

During the raid, a large quantity of raw material, finished spurious products, packaging items and machinery used for manufacturing and packing were seized.

The officer said around 600 kg of stearic acid, empty boxes, machines, and about 800 boxes each of counterfeit Fair and Lovely and Veet hair removal cream were seized during the operation.

A representative of Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) was called to the spot, who confirmed that the seized Fair and Lovely and Veet products were fake and not manufactured by the company, the DCP said.

Investigators said after one of his associates was arrested, Gupta allegedly destroyed evidence by burning around 25 cartons containing nearly 27,000 tubes of spurious Betnovate-C ointment, before locking the unit and fleeing to another state.

Police also found that Gupta was involved in a 2006 case under the Copyright Act registered at the Sadar Bazar police station.

“The racket posed a serious threat to public health as spurious medicines and fake cosmetic products were being supplied in the market,” Gautam said, adding that further investigation is underway to identify the source of raw materials, the distribution network and other backward and forward linkages to dismantle the supply chain.