The Enforcement Directorate (ED)  conducted searches at seven premises in Chennai linked to Sreesan Pharma under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the Coldrif cough syrup case, which led to the death of several children. 

Citing officials, ANI reported that the premises include the residences of top officials of the Tamil Nadu drug control office.

The searches come days after a breakthrough in the Madhya Pradesh cough syrup tragedy, in which at least 22 children in Chhindwara district died after consuming the company’s Coldrif cough syrup.

This marks the third major ED action against pharmaceutical firms in Chennai recently.

In September, multiple premises linked to Arvind Remedies Ltd were raided over a Rs 637-crore bank loan fraud. Earlier, in April 2024, the ED had searched 30 locations across Tamil Nadu in connection with the Jaffer Sadiq drug trafficking and money laundering case, exposing an international narcotics network.

Arrest Of Sresan Pharmaceuticals’ Owner 

ED’s probe comes following the arrest of Sresan Pharmaceuticals’ owner, G. Ranganathan (75), who was nabbed by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) from MP with the help of Chennai Police on October 9. 

As per IANS, Ranganathan, who had been absconding since the deaths were reported, was traced through electronic surveillance and arrested during a late-night operation around 1:30 am at his Kodambakkam residence.

Following the arrest, police teams raided the company’s Kancheepuram manufacturing facility, seizing crucial production records, drug samples, and regulatory documents.

Investigations revealed over 300 safety and regulatory violations at the plant. Laboratory tests in Chennai confirmed that the cough syrup contained 48.6 per cent diethylene glycol (DEG), a highly toxic industrial solvent. 

As the ED continues to tighten the noose, more arrests in the case are likely. Investigators are also piecing together the financial and administrative lapses that led to the pharmaceutical tragedy.