Chhindwara (MP), Oct 20 (PTI) Ranganathan Govindan, owner of a Tamil Nadu-based firm that manufactured contaminated cough syrup 'Coldrif' linked to the deaths of more than 20 children in Madhya Pradesh, was on Monday remanded in judicial custody by a local court, an official said.
A special investigation team (SIT) had earlier taken Govindan, owner of Sresen Pharma, to Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu for questioning after he was remanded in police custody for 10 days.
He was produced before Additional Session Judge Gautam Gurjar in Parasia town after the custody period ended, SIT chief Jitendra Singh Jaat said.
The official said that Chhindwara-based Dr Praveen Soni, who prescribed 'toxic' syrup, his nephew Rajesh Soni, a wholesaler of medicines and Saurabh Jain, a pharmacist at a medical store owned by Dr Soni's wife, are already in judicial custody.
According to officials, at least 24 children from Chhindwara and nearby districts died from kidney failure after consuming 'Coldrif' syrup, which was found to be toxic.
The SIT chief said the manufacturing unit of the company has been sealed.
Earlier, the state government had suspended two drug inspectors and a deputy director of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), besides transferring the state's drug controller over the deaths.
In a related development, a local court rejected Dr Soni's bail plea, after which he moved the Madhya Pradesh High Court. PTI COR LAL ARU