Police on Sunday arrested Bhola Prasad, the owner of Jharkhand-based Shaili Traders and father of alleged codeine cough syrup syndicate mastermind Shubham Jaiswal.
According to a report by India Today,
Prasad was detained at Kolkata airport by Sonbhadra police as he attempted to board a flight to Thailand, with officials saying he had onward travel plans for Singapore.
The official added that his attempt to leave the country suggested he may have been trying to evade the investigation. Meanwhile, Prasad is being brought to Sonbhadra on a transit remand and will be sent to jail once formalities at the Robertsganj police station are completed.
His arrest comes at a time when Uttar Pradesh authorities are tightening their probe into a large-scale network suspected of producing, transporting and distributing codeine-based cough syrups across several states.
On Friday, the state’s Food and Drugs Department filed cases against 12 more pharmaceutical firms linked to the Varanasi-based smuggling operation. This is in addition to the 26 firms already named earlier.
Inspector Janab Ali said the initial cases were lodged on 15 November, and the subsequent 12 firms were also identified as suspicious. When officers visited the listed addresses for inspection, many of the firms were either found closed or replaced by other shops. Notices seeking clarification were issued, but when the operators failed to respond, a fresh case was filed at the Kotwali police station.
The crackdown has intensified since last week’s major seizure in Varanasi, where around 93,000 bottles of codeine-based cough syrup were recovered from a warehouse in the Rohania area.
The consignment, estimated to be worth nearly Rs 2 crore, was found during a raid carried out by a police team acting on a tip-off. One worker involved in loading operations was detained for questioning, while the warehouse owner, identified as Mahesh Singh, is currently being traced.
Officials from the Drug Department and the Anti-Narcotics Task Force were also called to examine the seized stock.
(With inputs from agencies)
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