RIKA MEDICA PVT. LTD. Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By way of filing this instant Criminal Misc. Petition under Sec. 482 Cr.P.C. the petitioners have challenged the order dtd. 5/4/2022 passed learned Special Chief Judicial Magistrate, Jodhpur Metropolitan (PCPNDT Act Cases), Jodhpur Metro in Criminal Case No. 65/13, whereby their application for discharge from the case was rejected. The petitioners further seek quashing of Criminal Case No. 65/13 pending before the said Court for offences under Ss. 18(a)(i), 18(a)(vi) read with Ss. 16 & 17(c) of the Drugs & Cosmetics Act, 1940.

(2.) The brief facts of the present case is that the prosecution was initiated against the petitioners upon a complaint filed by the Drug Inspector, Jodhpur, on 31/10/2006, alleging violations of Ss. 18(a)(i) and 18(a)(vi) read with Ss. 16 and 17(c) of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. The complaint pertained to a drug sample of "Nimpark Plus" (Nimesulide & Paracetamol tablets) with Batch No. 830, manufactured in September 2002 and expiring in August 2005, which was collected on 4/8/2004 from a Jodhpur-based distributor. The sample was forwarded to the State Analyst, Drugs Testing Laboratory, Jaipur, on 7/8/2004, and the analysis report dtd. 8/6/2005 indicated non- conformity concerning disintegration time. The said report was communicated to the concerned parties between June and July 2005. However, the manufacturer received the letter from the Drug Controller only on 15/12/2005, leaving inadequate time to invoke rights under Sec. 25(3) of the Act before the drug's expiry in August 2005. The petitioners contested the findings, asserting that the batch initially complied with standards and that improper storage conditions could have affected the results.

(3.) The learned Addl. Chief Judicial Magistrate No. 3, Jodhpur, took cognizance on 8/1/2007. During trial proceedings, the petitioners moved an application under Sec. 25(4) of the Act on 8/2/2010, seeking reanalysis by the Central Drug Laboratory. The application was allowed on 15/10/2018, and the sample was subsequently sent to the Central Drugs Laboratory, Kolkata. However, by the time the sample was received on 28/8/2019, it had long expired in August 2005, and thus, testing was not conducted. Upon further direction from the Trial Court, the sample was again sent for analysis, and the Central Drugs Laboratory, Kolkata, in its report dtd. 19/12/2019, reaffirmed non- conformity regarding disintegration and noted that the sample had been tested post-expiry.