Delhi High Court refuses to quash FIR over sale of defective O2 concentrators during Covid-19

New Delhi The Delhi High Court has refused to quash an FIR registered against a firm and its officials for allegedly selling defective and sub-standard oxygen concentrators at inflated prices during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021.

Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma said it was not appropriate to quash the proceedings at a stage where the investigation was still pending and dismissed the petition by Matrix Cellular International Services Ltd and others.

Emphasising that during the pandemic, access to reliable and effective oxygen concentrators was critical, the court noted whether the oxygen concentrators met the parameters set by the WHO and the government, and whether the petitioner possessed knowledge about the equipment being sub-standard, was still under investigation.

"The allegations of selling the un-tested oxygen concentrators to get wrongful gains, taking undue advantage of the crisis and acute shortage of oxygen supply caused due to the pandemic, and compelling needy persons to part with their hard-earned money cannot be ignored. The margin of profit was very high, especially in view of the ongoing pandemic," the judge wrote in his order on November 20.

The court clarified that the petitioner had the liberty to approach the appropriate forum after the completion of the investigation while all of the petitioner's contentions were kept open for consideration at a later stage.

In the FIR registered in May 2021, the Delhi police alleged that it found 32 boxes containing oxygen concentrators having capacities of 9 litre and 5 litre, respectively, along with thermal scanners and masks in a restaurant in Lodhi Colony.

The probe revealed the accused persons allegedly purchased oxygen concentrators and other COVID-19 treatment-related equipment through various means and sold them at exorbitant prices.

Gaurav Khanna, CEO of Matrix Cellular, was arrested in the present case and subsequently granted bail.

The petitioner sought to quash the FIR on the ground it was without any basis and the oxygen concentrators were imported to meet urgent pandemic demands.

The petitioner claimed all the equipment were legally purchased and sold through its online platform and distributors using legitimate banking channels.