The Madhya Pradesh Police have arrested Sresan Pharmaceuticals owner S. Ranganathan from Chennai in connection with the death of children linked to a contaminated cough syrup.
He will be presented before a city court on Thursday and brought to Chhindwara in Madhya Pradesh after securing a transit remand.
A senior police official stated that Ranganathan, who had been on the run since October 7, was detained following a midnight operation and taken to the Sunguvarchatram police station for an inquiry.
#BREAKING Ranganathan, owner of Sresan Pharmaceuticals in Sunguvarchatram, Kancheepuram, has been arrested in connection with the deaths of 20 children in Madhya Pradesh who consumed his company’s cough syrup. The arrest was carried out by Madhya Pradesh police with assistance… pic.twitter.com/qJrBE93rXc
— IANS (@ians_india) October 9, 2025
The MP police team arrived in Chennai on October 5, following the registration of an FIR against the pharmaceutical company. The team comprised female officers, cyber experts, and drug inspectors to handle technical aspects of the investigation, reports said.
Sresan Pharmaceuticals, based in Kancheepuram in Tamil Nadu, is the manufacturer of Coldrif syrup, the samples of which were found to have contained diethylene glycol, a poisonous substance.
At least 20 children died in Chhindwara and Betul districts of Madhya Pradesh, allegedly after consuming Coldrif, prompting several state governments to ban its sale and distribution.
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The Tamil Nadu Drugs Controller have cancelled the company's manufacturing licence, while Kerala has banned the distribution of all medicines manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceuticals.
The MP government on Wednesday said it will bear the entire cost of the treatment of children suffering from kidney infections after taking the contaminated cough syrup.
Nine children, seven from Chhindwara and two from Betul, were undergoing treatment at various hospitals in Nagpur in neighbouring Maharashtra.
The government has suspended two drug inspectors and a deputy director of the Food and Drug Administration following the incident and formed a special investigation team to probe the case.
The tragic deaths of children have triggered a national health alert, leading to nationwide stock confiscations, and immediate, stringent changes to drug prescription guidelines. |
