C O M M O N O R D E R

These Criminal Original Petitions have been filed to quash the Calender Case No.7125 of 2018 pending on the file of the learned X Metropolitan Magistrate, Egmore.

2. The germane facts which leads to the filing of these petitions are as follows:

2.1. The petitioner in Crl.O.P.No.1535 of 2022 is a limited company registered under the Companies Act, 1956 in the name and style of “M/s.Kaya Limited” which is having its Skin Clinic Unit at Anna Nagar, Chennai and Warehouse at Thane. Mr. Harsh Charandas Mariwala is the Managing Director of the said Company. The petitioner company is engaged in the business of providing health and skin care treatment through its various clinics located all over the Country, as well as across the globe.

2.2. One of the branches of 'Kaya Skin Clinic' is situated at AC-15, 1st Floor, 2nd Avenue, Anna Nagar Chennai - 40 (hereinafter referred to as "Clinic" for the sake of brevity). The Clinic is duly registered under the Tamil Nadu Industrial Establishments (National Festival and Special Holidays0 Act, 1958 under the Registration Certificate dated 03.07.2009.

2.3. In the said Clinic, the treatment course of the patients usually involves with various drugs by administering injections applied in a medically controlled manner by registered medical practitioners. The drugs required for the treatment are procured by the concerned doctors at their request from the registered warehouse of the petitioner situated at 'SK Logistics Warehouse premises at Gala No. 8E, City Link Warehousing, Bhiwandi, Thane, Maharashtra - 421302' (hereinafter referred to as "Thane Warehouse"). The Thane warehouse is duly registered under license numbers T25/25931 and 25932 dated 10.03.2016 issued by the Food and Drug Administration, Maharashtra and the same has been renewed periodically.

2.4. Pursuant to 'an order bearing reference number 10471/IW1/2016 dated 16.06.2016' (hereinafter referred to as 'impugned order' for the sake of convenience and clarity) issued by the Director of Drugs Control, requesting the Drug Inspectors specified therein to cause an in-depth inspection on 17.06.2016 and 18.06.2016 at the premises of the Clinic of the petitioner company to detect the violations under the provision of 'the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940' [hereinafter referred to as the 'Act' for the sake of brevity] and 'the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules 1945' (for short, 'the Rules'). Thereby, the Drugs Inspector, Kodambakkam Range, Zone II, Chennai- 600 006, along with the Drugs Inspector, Intelligence Wing entered and inspected the premises of the Clinic of the petitioner company and drew samples from the available stock of drugs and seized the remaining stock of 26 drugs.

2.5. The inspecting team called for the following documents/ particulars from the petitioner company:

(i) Goods Transfer Note-cum-challan of Kaya Ltd. Warehouse, Thane (8) Delivery Notes);

(ii) Sales Invoices of the Clinic; and (iii) Details of the mode of transport and mode of payment for the Drugs received from the Thane Warehouse and etc.

2.6. During the course of inspection, it was observed that the drugs were stocked for sale without holding any drug licences. On verification of the purchase invoices of drugs, it was confirmed that the drugs were the stocks transferred from the petitioner company. Thus the petitioner Company had contravened the provision of Section 18(c) of the Act for having stocked drugs for sale without holding drug licenses.

2.7. On 20.06.2016, the seized drugs were produced before the learned X Metropolitan Magistrate, Egmore for safe custody and the property is allotted with B.No.836/16 dated 20.06.2016.

2.8. Thereafter on 05.01.2017, a show cause memo was issued to the petitioner company followed by another memo dated 28.03.2018, for the contravention of Section

18 (c) of the Act for having stocked the drugs for sale and sold drugs, without having any drug licenses and directed to disclose the name and address of the person from whom the dr