Codeine cough syrup racket: Two Varanasi traders bought 5 lakh vials from kingpin’s dad, sold them for ₹7 crore
The two men allegedly obtained a drug licence prepared using forged documents and used it to sell codeine-based cough syrup
Even as several agencies were probing a racket involving the illegal trade of codeine-based cough syrup in Uttar Pradesh, two more arrests were made in connection with the case here, police said on Monday.
The two men, who were arrested by a joint team of police and SOG in Varanasi, allegedly obtained a drug licence prepared using forged documents and used it to sell codeine-based cough syrup, deputy commissioner of police (Crime) Sarvanan T said, adding the two bought over 5 lakh vials from key accused Bhola Prasad Jaiswal’s Shaili Traders in Ranchi, Jharkhand and sold them for ₹7 crore
Bhola Prasad was recently arrested by Sonbhadra police in Kolkata in connection with the case. He is the father of the cough syrup racket’s kingpin, Shubham Jaiswal, who is still wanted in the case.
Identified as Vishal Kumar Jaiswal, 34, and Badal Arya, 33, the two were booked in a case registered under sections of the BNS and the NDPS Act in Varanasi, said police.
The DCP said the two used their licence to obtain and sell large quantities of cough syrup containing codeine to be used as a narcotic substance, and not as a medicinal drug, through various medical firms, thereby obtaining financial gain.
“Hari Om Pharma, owned by Vishal Kumar Jaiswal, bought 4,18,000 vials of cough syrup from Shaili Traders in Ranchi, Jharkhand, which is owned by Bhola Jaiswal, a key accused named in the case, and sold them for over ₹5 crore. Kaal Bhairav Traders, owned by Badal Arya, bought 1,23,000 vials of cough syrup from Shaili Traders and sold them for over ₹2 crore. The accused also prepared fake e-way bills in the names of their firms,” added the officer.
The officer said Vishal Jaiswal and Arya were also given a cash commission of Rs. 30,000 to ₹40,000 every month. The accused reportedly confessed to doing a business of ₹7 crore in a year, he added.
