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HC stalls proceedings against Gambhir, his foundation in drugs hoarding case
In a plea filed through advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai, Gambhir said the medicines were distributed under the guidance of a doctor and was done for charity, a stand disputed by the department.
New Delhi: The Delhi high court on Monday halted proceedings in a trial court against BJP MP Gautam Gambhir, his foundation, wife and mother in a complaint filed against them by the state Drugs Control Department for alleged unauthorised stocking and distribution of Fabiflu medicine during the second wave of Covid-19.
Justice Rajnish Bhatnagar issued a notice to the department on a plea by Gambhir which sought quashing of the criminal complaint and the summons issued by the trial court.
Seeking the Drugs Control Department’s response, the judge said, “Till then the proceedings are stayed.”
In a plea filed through advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai, Gambhir said the medicines were distributed under the guidance of a doctor and was done for charity, a stand disputed by the department.
The Drugs Control Department registered a complaint against Gautam Gambhir, his mother Seema, and wife Natasha, in addition to the Gautam Gambhir Foundation and its CEO Aprajita Singh, for offences under section 18(c) read with section 27(b)(ii) of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
Section 18(c) of the Act prohibits manufacturing, sale and distribution of drugs without a license and Section 27(b)(ii) makes sale and distribution without a valid license punishable with imprisonment for a term not less than three years but which may extend to five years and with fine.
The complaint was registered by the department after a division bench of the high court directed it to conduct inquiries against people stocking and distributing medicines as it was a violation of the Act.
The high court expressed displeasure over the manner in which a huge quantity of the drug was procured during the Covid wave, noting that genuine patients who needed medicines at that particular time could not get it as a bulk of the stock was taken away by Gambhir’s NGO.
On June 3, the department informed the high court that Gambhir’s NGO was guilty of unauthorised stocking, procuring and distributing Fabiflu medicines to Covid-19 patients.
On July 26, pursuant to the complaint by the department, a trial court noted that the complainant has been able to prima facie prove the commission of the offence, and had summoned Gambhir to appear before it.
Last month, the city court posted the matter for hearing on February 7, 2022.
On Monday, senior advocate Atmaram NS Nadkarni, appearing for Gambhir, challenged the city court order and argued that the complaint against his client could not be justified because he had distributed medicines free of cost to those in need and did not sell them to make profit. He added that Gambhir’s family members have also been named in the complaint for no reason.
Additional standing counsel Nandita Rao, appearing for the Drugs Control Department, pointed out that the inquiry against Gambhir’s NGO was carried out on the instructions of the division bench of the high court.
She submitted that while the division bench had exempted the people who were distributing oxygen, it directed inquiry against those stocking and distributing medicines.
She said that a large quantity of medicines was found from Gambhir’s NGO, adding that the distribution of medicines cannot be done without a licence.
The court said that the matter needed consideration and asked the department to file its reply. The matter will be heard on December 8.
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