Court Stays Move To Arrest 12 Boehringer Mannheim Officials

The company obtained a court order over the weekend barring any arrest till October 10, when bail applications for eleven of the 12 accused will be heard, police said. Yes, we issued arrest warrants, Bipin Singh, deputy commissioner of police in Thane district said.

He said the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had accused the 12, including Boehringer Mannheim (India)s expatriate managing director Paul Stinson, of criminal negligence in allowing contamination of an anti-bacterial medicine. Police said Stinson was believed to have left the country for Canada.

At the Bombay office of the firm, it appeared to be business as usual. There is no one here who can talk to the press, said the secretary to George Verghese, the marketing vice-president. Hes busy at a marketing meeting, she said when asked about Verghese. Last week, FDA cancelled the licence of the companys Thane unit, where Comsat Forte, the antibacterial tablet, was being produced.

 

Samples tested by the FDA were found to contain the anti-diabetic ingredient glibenclamide, which causes a drastic fall in blood pressure, it was reported on Sunday. FDA investigations showed that surplus stocks of glibenclamide amounting to 4.1 kg were lying unaccounted for in the units stores since November 1995.

The report quoted FDA officials as saying the stocks had become mixed with Comsat Forte ingredients during production. The drug was tested after 62 people turned critical after using it at an eye camp on August 16. Although the deadline for recall (of the drug from all markets given by FDA) expired on September 5, it claimed two lives in Kolar, Karnataka, five days later, it said.

Company officials and FDA commissioner Anil Lakhina were not available for comment.

Boehringer Mannheim India had an annual turnover of over Rs 50 crore, industry officials said. The companys shares fell on the Bombay Stock Exchange on Monday in reaction to the developments.