A Khulna court yesterday sent a former Awami League (AL) leader and his employee to jail for manufacturing and selling fake medicines under renowned manufacturers' labels.

Rapid Action Battalion arrested them in Jabusa area of Rupsha upazila in Khulna on Monday night.

Khandoker Rafiqul Islam, additional DIG and captain of Rab-6, said Kazi Shahnawaj, former president of AL Khulna city unit and also of Bangladesh Frozen Food Export Association, used to run the business in collaboration with many hospitals for getting orders of fake medicines.   

The factory was being run in the guise of sea food processing factory with the name “Shahnawaj Sea Food”. Rab recovered a huge amount of raw materials, including rice powder, and 2.5 lakh empty strips of Fluclox capsules having ACI Pharmaceuticals' name inscribed on it, four sacks of Renatid tablets' strips with Opsonin Pharm Limited's name, and 3.5 lakh saline packets with Prince Pharmaceuticals' labels. Shahnawaj told journalists that the factory had been closed for a long time and just two months ago he rented it out to one Jakir Hossain.

According to Rab they raided Dhaka Mitford Hospital two months ago where they found many fake medicines and during investigation they learned that those medicines were bought from Khulna. Rab filed a case against some 13 persons including Shahnawaj, Jakir, and the employee, Sharif.