Seven suspects including the former Secretary to the Ministry of Health, Janaka Chandragupta, were further remanded on Wednesday (Jan.17) over the controversial procurement of substandard human immunoglobulin vials.
As such, on the orders of Maligakanda Magistrate’s Court, the seven accused were put behind bars on remand until January 24.
Chandragupta was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on December 18, when he arrived at the premises to record a statement substandard human immunoglobulin scandal.
On December 14, Maligakanda Magistrate Lochani Abeywickrama had declared that the actions of the former Secretary of the Ministry of Health pertaining to the process of purchasing the batch of ‘substandard’ human intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) were deemed suspicious.
Thus, the magistrate also ordered that all responsible parties be arrested and produced before the court irrespective of their positions, for the administration of justice over the providing of substandard medicine to the public.
Several high-profile arrests have been made thus far in connection with the case, including that of the former Secretary of the Ministry of Health, the Director of the Health Ministry’s Medical Supplies Division and three other officials of the same division, as well as the owner of the relevant company which is said to have imported the batch of substandard Immunoglobulin vials by forging documents.
