In Brief
INOX Air Products Private Limited and its Managing Director challenged a high court decision dismissing their petition to quash criminal proceedings under Section 482 CrPC. The company had sold Nitrous Oxide to another licensed manufacturer without a separate wholesale license. The Supreme Court held that the statutory definition of 'manufacture' is wide and includes altering, breaking up, and repacking drugs. Since both parties held valid manufacturing licenses under Form 25, the sale between manufacturers for processing purposes did not violate the Drugs & Cosmetics Act. The Court also quashed the proceedings because the trial magistrate's summoning order lacked any reasoned application of mind, violating established criminal procedure norms.
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