FDA raids Snapdeal for illegal drug sale

One of the two drugs being sold by SnapdealE-commerce giant Snapdeal was on Friday raided by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the allegations of selling prescription drugs through its portal. According to FDA, the raid was conducted on the basis of specific information received by FDA commissioner Dr. Harshadeep Kamble about the illegal sale of prescription drugs on Snapdeal's website.

The drugs allegedly sold on Snapdeal were Ascoril, a cough syrup, and Vigora tablets, the Indian version of Viagra. Both these drugs are scheduled drugs that are meant to be sold only through prescription of a registered medical practitioner.

The raids were carried out at the Jasper Infotech at Goregoan in Mumbai, the company which owns Snapdeal.

FDA has issued a notice to Snapdeal to furnish details of the prescription drugs, including that of the companies, distributors, medical stores and the payment details. It has also been directed by FDA to remove the listing of the drugs from its e-commerce portal.

FDA came across information which revealed that the said drugs were sourced from manufacturers and medical stores in Rajasthan and other parts of North India.

Under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act of 1940, there is no provision to sell such prescription drugs online. According to section 18 (c) of the Act, read with Rule 65, a prescription of a doctor is necessary for selling such drugs. Under Section 27(b), the Act also prescribes a prison term from three to five years and a fine of not less than Rs.1 lakh for those who violate the law.

A statement issued by Snapdeal that was provided to MAIL TODAY said, "We shared the details of our fulfillment centre as required by the FDA team. Upon their visit to the fulfillment centre, they have not found any such product. We are assisting the FDA team in this investigation."