The passenger in the car, Mujammil Khan, who identified himself as a medical representative for Hemped Souls International LLP, disclosed to the investigators that the recovered products belonged to Avi Sharma.

Sharma was subsequently called to the spot, where he failed to produce any valid licence to stock, sell, exhibit, or distribute the drug, and admitted sole responsibility for his actions.

According to the prosecution, the labels on the recovered vials claimed they were manufactured by Eli Lilly Italia SpA, the Italian subsidiary of the US pharma major, and imported/marketed by Eli Lilly and Company (India) Pvt Ltd.

However, the labels mismatched with the original products, and verification with the actual manufacturing company confirmed that the drugs did not belong to them and were entirely spurious.

Spurious products manufactured from flat

During the investigation, it was revealed that Sharma was allegedly manufacturing these spurious products himself from a residential flat at Pivotal Paradise at Sector-62, Gurgaon.

A subsequent search led to the recovery of the fabricated drug labels from his residential premises. Investigations also proved that Sharma was manufacturing another drug under the brand name ‘Tone UP’, falsely claiming on its label that it was manufactured in Japan, without holding any valid drug manufacturing licence.

Seeking regular bail, Sharma’s counsel argued that he had been in custody since April 19. The defence submitted that Sharma had previously been awarded the ‘Bhartiya Excellence Award for Ayurvedic Innovator of the year’ and contended that his project ‘Tone Up’ was strictly on an experimental level. They claimed the product was never sold in the market or any medical store, and argued that the prosecution’s story was flimsy as no private witnesses were joined during the recovery.

Opposing the bail application, Drugs Control Officer Amandeep Chauhan argued that the allegations against the accused are heinous and carry a punishment of up to life imprisonment. He noted that the accused was actively involved in manufacturing and selling spurious, adulterated, and misbranded life-saving drugs, and releasing him could adversely affect the ongoing investigation.

Illegal operations started in April

Chauhan had earlier told The Indian Express that Sharma, who worked at his father’s firm until 2016, began the illegal operation in April in his Gurgaon flat, allegedly aiming to scale up earnings to Rs 2 crore a month. He allegedly manufactured counterfeit versions of Mounjaro, used to manage diabetes and weight loss. The drug, produced by American pharma giant Eli Lilly, was introduced in India last year.