Nagpur : In a fresh twist, the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) woke up from its slumber on Tuesday to reach Tehsil police station to file a fresh FIR in the Mayo sting operation case, in which police have already booked the offenders and arrested them too on February 22.
Police refused to file a second FIR in the same matter. On February 16, police had written a letter to FDA, followed by another this week, but the drug regulatory authority had so far refused to file FIR, before its turnaround on Tuesday.
Zonal DCP Gorakh Bhamre said police had repeatedly sought a complaint from FDA, which they had been refusing so far. “We will now add their complaint and issues in our evidence to make the case stronger. But, police could have got custody remand of the pharmacist and the trespasser had FDA lodged the complaint earlier,” said Bhamre. TOI too had highlighted how police were denied remand custody by the court as FDA did not file their complaint.
Mayo hospital authorities too have not filed their internal committee report as of now.
In the meanwhile, three different drug licenses of the concerned pharmacist have now come to fore, making the illegal drug selling case in Mayo hospital more murky. The FDA, which may file a police complaint regarding this, is itself under the scanner now.
Sources said the pharmacist had surrendered one license, and procured a second one immediately from FDA under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act. The pharmacist is also in possession of yet another license in the name of his father.
FDA, along with police, had visited the pharmacy at Pardi on February 15 after chemists nabbed Sumeet Sonulkar illegally selling and supplying medicines in ward number 44 of surgical complex at Mayo Hospital. The cops and FDA had returned empty handed from the pharmacy and allowed pharmacist Rakesh Khandare to produce documents on the following day, which made the police case against him weak.
