Madras High Court grants interim injunction against online medicine sale

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has delivered a stay order on sale of medicines online, granting the interim injunction on a petition filed by the Tamil Nadu Chemists and Druggists Association.The druggists association had contended that e-tailers dealing in medicines are operating without proper licences.SK Chandrakumar, counsel for the association, confirmed with ET that the stay order was delivered today by Justice R Mahadevan on Wednesday.Senior advocate ARL Sundaresan, who had appeared on the behalf of the druggists organisation, told ET that the court had directed the Government of India and "all competent authorities under it" to stop sales of pharmaceutical products and medicines on online platforms, adding that the interim order was with immediate effect.The Tamil Nadu Chemists and Druggists Association had field a writ petition in the Madras High Court to “block the link of all such websites from India who are selling Schedule H, H1 and schedule X medicines in violation of Rule-65 & 97 of Drugs & Cosmetics Rules, 1945, till the license are granted to sell medicines through online.”The Centre had put out revised pharmaceutical laws on August 28 including sale of drugs online, against which many companies in the druggists’ organisation had sent objections. The petitioner held that online pharmacies are operating without proper licences, even as policymakers have said they are in the process of firming up rules to incorporate the emergence of modern retailing technologies.In its petition, the organisation argued: “As on today there are more than 3500 sites which are dealing with the online medicines and distributing the same in the whole country.”The respondents in the petition filed by the chemists and druggists body were the Centre, the state and Central and State druf controlling bodies. the The matter has been posted for further hearing on November 9.

from Economic Times https://ift.tt/2QadU1h