Dolo 650 freebies case: Supreme Court asks Centre to file reply in 10 days

The apex court described the Dolo 650 "freebies case" as a serious matter and listed the next hearing on September 29

The Supreme Court on Thursday described the Dolo "freebies case" as a serious matter. It listed the matter for hearing on September 29 and directed the Centre to file a reply in ten days.

A two-judge bench of Justices D Y Chandrachud and A S Bopanna asked the Centre's lawyer, Additional Solicitor General KM Nataraj, to seek directions from the government for formulating a uniform code of pharma marketing practices to curb unethical practices and ensure an effective monitoring mechanism, transparency, accountability and consequences for violations.

The court was hearing the Federation of Medical & Sales Representatives Association of India (FMRAI) vs Union of India case. In an earlier hearing, FMRAI had highlighted CBDT's allegations against Micro Labs, Bengaluru, the makers of Dolo 650, of spending Rs 1,000 cr on distributing freebies to doctors.

Micro Labs had responded by saying that the amount was spent over many years.

The pharma firm was under CBDT scanner for tax evasion after the income tax department raided its 36 premises across nine states in July. According to Sheetal Sapele, president-marketing, AWACS, a pharma marketing research organisation, Micro Labs is among the top 20 players in the Indian pharma market with a market share of around 1.7 per cent, and Dolo 650 contributes 14 per cent to Micro Labs' turnover. However, it is not a single-brand company and has a presence across segments like cardiology, diabetes, ophthalmology, psychiatry, antibiotics, and dermatology.

Senior advocate Sanjay Parekh and advocate Aparna Bhat, appearing for the petitioner FMRAI told the bench that the market price of any tablet up to 500 mg is regulated under the price control mechanism of the government, but the price of the drug above 500 mg can be fixed by the pharma company concerned.