In a major breakthrough, the Uttarakhand Police’s Special Task Force (STF) arrested Devi Dayal Gupta, the alleged mastermind behind a multi-crore fake drug manufacturing racket that has supplied counterfeit life-saving medicines across Uttarakhand and other parts of India for over four years.
Gupta, owner of Dr Mittal Laboratories Pvt Ltd based in Ashok Vihar, Delhi, was apprehended after an extensive investigation initiated by a directive from State DGP Deepam Seth to crack down on counterfeit drug syndicates threatening public health.
SSP STF Navneet Singh Bhullar revealed that prior arrests included Santosh Kumar, Naveen Bansal, and Aditya Kala, who were caught with fake packaging and QR codes of reputed pharmaceutical brands such as Glenmark, Ipca, Intas Pharma, Alkem Health Science, Dr Reddy’s, and Cadila Pharmaceuticals.
Investigations uncovered that Naveen Bansal had been sourcing counterfeit drugs manufactured at Gupta’s labs in Sahaspur and distributing them across Haryana and Rajasthan.
The STF’s persistent efforts led to Gupta’s arrest in Dehradun. Gupta, reportedly the kingpin of the organized crime syndicate, was responsible for producing and supplying a staggering 1.423 crore tablets and 2 lakh capsules between 2021 and now. The counterfeit drugs included popular medicines like Pantoprazole, Diclocin SP, Levocetirizine, Prochlorperazine, Amlodipine, Aceclofenac-Paracetamol, and Telmisartan.
Authorities continue their investigation to dismantle the entire fake drug network and safeguard public health.
