Bribery case part of ‘larger conspiracy’ to prevent me from being DCGI: S Eswara Reddy

Joint Drug Controller S Eswara Reddy, who was recently refused bail in a bribery case, has alleged that the graft allegations were part of a larger conspiracy to prevent him from being the next Drug Controller General of India (DCGI).

Reddy was arrested on June 21 for allegedly taking a bribe to waive the phase-3 clinical trial of the Insulin Aspart injection of Biocon Biologics. On July 19, a CBI court in Delhi rejected his bail application and those of Biocon Biologics' Associate Vice President L Praveen Kumar and three others.

Reddy alleged that the proceedings were “part of some larger conspiracy not to let him appear for the interview for the above post (DCGI) though despite (CBI) proceedings, no departmental enquiry has been instituted against him”.

He didn’t elaborate on the conspiracy or those who were part of it.

He also told the court that due to his “impeccable career and character” he was  appointed interim   Drug   Controller of   India from February 2018 to August 2019 and was likely to be appointed as such.

Opposing the bail plea, the CBI said they caught Reddy while he was accepting Rs 4 lakh from Dinesh Dua, director at Synergy Network India Private Limited.

“The recorded conversations against the accused persons are available in this case. The investigation is at an initial stage and hence if he is released at this stage the on­going investigation may be hampered,” the CBI counsel said.

Reddy played with the life of the public by indulging in corrupt practices concerning the waiver of the phase 3 trial of the drug, it said.

Judge Nirja Bhatia while rejecting the plea also allowed the CBI to collect voice samples of all the five accused as part of the probe. The samples would be compared with the recorded conversations.