Aishwarya Rathore-
On Monday, the Supreme Court dismissed a plea brought by the Gautam Gambhir Foundation challenging the Delhi High Court decision ordering an inquiry into the trust’s alleged hoarding of COVID-19 drugs.
A Bench comprising Justices DY Chandrachud and MR Shah made oral observations disapproving the distribution of essential COVID drugs by a single individual when people were running ‘helter-skelter’ to procure the same during the peak of the second wave in April-May this year.
The bench said that the petitioner gets itself impleaded in the proceedings before the Delhi High Court and raises the contentions there.
Furthermore, Justice Sanghi remarked’ “He might have not done it with that intention but this is not to be done. The way he has gone about it, he has done a disservice. This wasn’t the way certainly. Even with the best of intentions, they are malpractices. In our society, we can’t permit this.”
On May 24, the Delhi High Court had directed the Drugs Controller to conduct an inquiry against Gautam Gambhir, AAP MLAs Preeti Tomar and Praveen Kumar on unauthorized distribution of COVID drugs.
Gautam Gambhir was investigated for allegedly distributing Fabiflu medication strips in his area.
A division bench of Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Jasmeet Singh was hearing a petition filed by Dr. Deepak Singh seeking the registration of FIRs against political leaders who were hoarding and unlawfully distributing Covid 19 medicines, depriving the general public of access to the drugs.
On July 8, the Drugs Controller notified the High Court that the Gautam Gambhir Foundation, its trustees and CEO, as well as AAP MLAs Praveen Kumar and Imran Hussain, were charged for violating the terms of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
Also Read : DCGI tells Delhi High Court: Gautam Gambhir Foundation illegally stocked Covid medicine Fabiblu