SC to hear plea seeking CBI probe into cough syrup deaths on October 10
SC to hear plea seeking CBI probe into cough syrup deaths on October 10
New Delhi: In a major development, the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on Friday, calling for inquiry and systematic reform in India's drug safety mechanisms following the tragic deaths of children in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan due to toxic cough syrups.
A bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and K Vinod Chandran has taken swift action, scheduling the PIL for a hearing on October 10 after lawyer Vishal Tiwari stressed the urgency of the matter.
As per PTI, the plea seeks a court-monitored probe into the incidents and urges the constitution of a National Judicial Commission or Expert Committee headed by a retired Supreme Court judge.
The PIL requests that all pending FIRs and investigations concerning the deaths of children caused by toxic cough syrups across states be transferred to the CBI.
It seeks a probe under the supervision of a retired Supreme Court judge to ensure fairness and uniformity.
The petition contends that separate state-level investigations have led to fragmented accountability, enabling repeated lapses that allow hazardous formulations to reach the market.
The petition comes amid reports from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, where several children died allegedly after consuming a particular kind of cough syrup.
The plea seeks court's direction to the central government to identify the regulatory failures that allowed substandard medicines to reach the market.
It also urged the court to mandate toxicological testing of all suspect products through NABL-accredited laboratories before any further sale or export is permitted.
The PIL claimed that laboratory tests conducted by the Madhya Pradesh government confirmed that Diethylene Glycol (DEG)—a toxic industrial solvent prohibited for pharmaceutical use—was found in 'Coldrif Cough Syrup', manufactured by Tamil Nadu's Sresan Pharma Pvt. Ltd.
“Despite the catastrophic findings, the Union Government and the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) allegedly failed to issue an immediate nationwide recall or ban, permitting the continued circulation of potentially poisonous medicines across States,” the plea stated.
“This is not a tragedy of chance but of negligence, apathy, and regulatory failure -- an institutional rot that allows counterfeit and adulterated drugs to enter the public market unchecked,” the PIL stated.
