There are very contentious and unacceptable issues involved in the controversy over the questioning of the top official of a drug company in Daman by the Mumbai police and the intervention of senior BJP leaders of Maharashtra on his behalf. Rajesh Dokania, a director of the company, Bruck Pharma, had been called to the station by the police on suspicion that the company planned to export stocks of Remdesivir, which is used for treatment of Covid-19 patients. BJP leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly, Devendra Fadnavis, his counterpart in the Council Praveen Daneker and another leader Prasad Lad went to the station and interceded with the police for him. The police allowed the company official to go home after questioning him for over an hour. But it was highly improper for the leaders to confront the police over the matter and press for his release, as small-time politicians do to get offenders released from mofussil police stations.
There is a ban on the export Remdesivir from the country. The police acted on information about the storage of the medicine by the company and the questioning of the company official was part of the investigation. There have been serious complaints about shortage of medicines and vaccines. Maharashtra, which is worst hit by the pandemic, has acutely experienced the shortages, and has charged the Central government of discriminatory treatment. Fadnavis’ explanations about the incident are not convincing. He has said that the BJP was procuring the medicine from the company for the state. He said he had spoken to Union Minister of State for Chemicals Mansukh Mandavia for necessary permissions and got them arranged. But why should a political party arrange production and storage of an important medicine in bulk quantity? Parties and individuals are not authorised under the law to buy medicines in large quantities. Fadnavis also said permission was taken from the Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) to donate the drugs to the state government, but the police have said they had no information about this. There was reportedly a stock of at least 60,000 vials of Remdesivir with the company, and the questions about their production and storage and the BJP leaders’ involvement in the matter need better answers.
It is unfortunate that parties and their leaders are engaged in political games and one-upmanship when the country is in the midst of a pandemic and there is a shortage of medicines. State governments have the most important role in fighting the pandemic. The Central government and the Opposition parties in states should support them in their efforts. Maharashtra’s BJP leaders acted wrongly in the matter, and their conduct was especially bad in these difficult times.