The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday carried out a sweeping series of searches across multiple states in connection with an alleged syndicate involved in the illegal diversion of codeine-based cough syrup from India to Bangladesh.
The coordinated action covered four districts of Uttar Pradesh, along with locations in Ahmedabad (Gujarat) and Ranchi (Jharkhand).
In Uttar Pradesh, the searches were conducted in Lucknow, Varanasi, Jaunpur and Saharanpur, targeting a network of individuals and firms accused of operating a large-scale pharmaceutical smuggling and money-laundering operation.
According to officials, the ED raided 25 premises linked to the alleged kingpins of the syndicate — Vibhor Rana, his brother Vishal Rana, Shubham Jaiswal, and their associates.
These individuals have already been booked in multiple criminal cases by the Uttar Pradesh Police and the Food Safety and Drug Administration (FSDA) across 31 districts of the state over the past two months.
Investigators allege that the accused laundered illicit proceeds through a maze of shell companies, funnelling the money into high-value assets such as real estate, luxury jewellery, premium vehicles and expensive accessories to disguise the illegal earnings.
Among the key properties searched were the lavish mansions of Vibhor and Vishal Rana and the premises of their pharmaceutical firm, BN Pharmaceuticals, in Saharanpur’s Shastri Nagar area.
The ED also searched Shubham Jaiswal’s residence in Varanasi, as well as the office of his Ranchi-based firm Saili Traders, located in the Tapodana Industrial Area of Hatia.
Sources said investigators examined documents related to 189 bogus firms at Saili Traders’ Ranchi office.
Preliminary findings suggest these shell entities were floated to route illegal transactions amounting to nearly ₹450 crore, allegedly generated through the unlawful sale and diversion of cough syrup and other medicines.
During the search at Jaiswal’s Varanasi residence — which had to be opened after being found locked — officials recovered luxury designer handbags from Prada and Gucci, along with high-end Rado and Audemars Piguet watches, collectively valued at over ₹1.5 crore.
The ED is also scrutinising the expenditure incurred on the residence’s luxury interior design and fittings.
In Lucknow, ED officials were reportedly taken aback by the discovery of a palatial house owned by Alok Singh, a dismissed Uttar Pradesh Police constable and one of the accused in the cough syrup racket.
Singh has been lodged in a Lucknow jail since his arrest on December 2. A government-approved property valuer has been engaged to assess the cost of the property.
Preliminary estimates indicate that the construction alone may have cost around ₹5 crore, excluding the price of the land.
In Ahmedabad, the agency searched the premises of Aarpik Pharmaceuticals Private Limited, operated by Manohar Jaiswal, an alleged associate of Shubham Jaiswal.
Investigators detected unaccounted financial transactions worth several crores of rupees between Aarpik Pharmaceuticals and its sister concern, Idhika Life Sciences, according to officials familiar with the inquiry.
The ED also found evidence of substantial expenditure on the construction and interior decoration of the luxury residence belonging to Vibhor and Vishal Rana in Saharanpur.
Further searches were conducted at the house and offices of Amit Singh Tata in Jaunpur, another accused who is currently in jail. Documents related to his movable and immovable assets were seized as part of the investigation.
Officials said a detailed probe is underway to establish trade linkages, money trails and the role of each key accused in the alleged international smuggling network.
So far, the UP Police and FSDA have registered 52 cases against 133 firms across 31 districts in connection with the cough syrup racket.
Nearly two dozen accused have been arrested, and further action is likely as the investigation progresses.
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