Dhaka: The High Court on Monday ordered 20 pharmaceutical companies and 14 other antibiotics manufacturers to stop production and supply as well as withdraw all of their medicines which have been found to be of low quality.

An HC bench comprising Justice Salma Masud Chowdhury and Justice Kazi Mohammad Ejarul Haque Akond issued the order after hearing on a supplemental petition in this connection.

Advocate Manzil Morshed filed the petition on behalf of Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh, responding to a report, titled ‘Low quality medicines of 34 cos still exist in market’, published by vernacular daily Dainik Samakal on 28 June.

The writ petition was filed with the HC seeking its directives to revoke the licenses of 20 pharmaceutical companies and 14 antibiotics manufacturers for their failure to produce quality medicines.

Earlier on 7 June, the HC ordered the government to stop production of 20 pharmaceutical companies within seven days for their failure to produce quality medicines.

Later on 13 June, responding to four supplement petitions by the defence Chamber Judge of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court Justice Mirza Hussain Haider also upheld the HC order and sent the four supplemental petitions to the regular bench of the apex court for hearing.

On 15 June, the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court upheld the High Court order that asked the government to stop production of 20 pharmaceutical companies for their failure to produce quality medicines.

The court also ordered to oblige by the three rules issued by the HC in this regard by 18 August.

On 20 September, 2014, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare Ministry formed a five-member probe committee to identify the pharmaceutical companies that produce substandard and adulterated medicines.

After visiting 84 drug manufacturing entities, the committee submitted a report to the standing committee on 1 February, 2016 where it recommended scrapping the licenses of 20 for producing substandard medicines—the same 20 companies on whom the HC order was passed.