Gurugram chemist, lab operator held for selling abortion pills illegally

In a joint crackdown by the Health Department and Gurugram police, a chemist and a lab operator were arrested for illegally selling Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) kits near the Civil Hospital in Sector 10. The operation was carried out following a tip-off about the illicit sale of abortion medicines, priced at Rs 1,000 per kit.

According to Suresh Verma, the Drugs Control Officer, information was received about illegal activity at Juneja Chemist, situated near the hospital. Acting swiftly, a team was constituted and a pregnant woman was deployed as a decoy customer. She approached the chemist and was able to purchase an MTP kit after paying the amount. The team immediately apprehended the chemist on the spot. An FIR has been registered against him at the Sector 10 police station.

During the investigation, it came to light that MTP kits were also being sold from a nearby pathology lab. The same strategy was employed, with the decoy woman approaching the lab posing as a customer. The lab operator handed her the kit in exchange for Rs 1,000. Following the transaction, the team raided the lab and arrested the operator. A second FIR was filed at the Sector 9A police station.

Authorities have sealed the chemist shop and initiated the process to cancel its licence. Further scrutiny revealed that the lab did not possess any licence to sell medicines in the first place.

“The accused have been taken into custody and are currently being interrogated to determine the source of the MTP kits and the duration for which they had been running this illegal business,” said Verma. He added that strict action would be taken against those flouting medical regulations, particularly in cases involving sensitive and potentially dangerous medications like abortion kits.