GUJRANWALA, Sept 13: Medicines seized by drug inspectors in raids at medical stores cannot be declared spurious without examination by testing laboratories and store owners cannot be challaned before that.

This was claimed by Pakistan Chemist Retailers Association's Punjab chairman Dr Ishaq while speaking at a workshop in Wazirabad on Monday. He said keeping outdated medicines at medical stores was not an offence because it was the responsibility of distributors and medicine companies to take back such stocks.

He pointed out that 33,000 medicines were registered while medical representatives could remember the names of all those. Other speakers, including Muhammad Farooq Abid, Abdul Hafiz, Riffat Ali Khan, Muhammad Saeed and Ali Shah, urged chemists and medical store owners to maintain record of all medicines.

He assured the chemists that the association would provide better facilities to them, but warned them against selling spurious medicines. They also urged the medical store owners to get licences for their stores otherwise, the association would not help them in case of any raid.

Meanwhile, members of a health raiding team, led by a drug inspector, were thrashed by alleged quacks at Ghakkhar Town and Naukher on Monday. The team, however, got registered cases against them after sealing their clinics and stores.

DEATH SENTENCE: The Anti-Terrorism Court No 1 awarded death sentence and Rs100,000 fine to a convict here on Monday. Judge Mushahid Mustaqeem also awarded 21-years imprisonment and Rs20,000 fine to him under other offences. The court acquitted his parents Basharat Ali and Bashiran bibi for lack of evidence.

According to the prosecution, the convict abducted a girl from a street at Baghbanpura on the Hafizabad Road on April 13 and later killed her after raping her. Baghbanpura police later arrested him and submitted charge-sheet before court.