HC asks for not to sell expired drugs
But bidder receives those from DMCH
The High Court yesterday asked the government and Dhaka Medical College and Hospital authorities not to sell its expired medicines through auction or through any other means.
It passed the order in response to a writ petition filed after The Daily Star published a report on May 20 under the headline “Expired drugs on auction!”
The report said the burn unit of DMCH is going to hand over the expired drugs to the bidder, as they were auctioned rather than be destroyed, raising the risk of their re-entry to the market.
An HC bench in its rule asked the government to explain within two weeks why it should not be directed to take necessary steps to stop selling, using and circulating the expired drugs.
The bench of Justice AHM Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik and Justice Gobinda Chandra Tagore came up with the order and rule after hearing the petition filed by two Supreme Court lawyers.
Barrister Mahbub Shafique and Advocate KM Fafizul Alam jointly filed the petition as a public interest litigation yesterday seeking directives on the authorities concerned to take necessary steps to stop selling, using, auctioning and circulating expired drugs.
The petitioners themselves moved the petition before the bench, saying that expired drugs might be used for treatment of the people and their life will be jeopardised.
They prayed to the court not to allow the DMCH authorities to sell the expired drugs through auction.
Secretary to the ministries of health and home affairs, director generals of directorates of health and drug administration and director of DMCH have been made respondents to the rule.
Meanwhile, the authorities concerned yesterday handed over huge amount of intact drug bottles made of glass and plastic, empty oral saline packets along with some old furniture to a selected bidder as per its tender provision, DMCH sources said.
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