NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a notice to the central government, seeking its response to serious allegations made by an NGO that 58 illegal clinical trials were conducted over the past four years at Sheth Vadilal Sarabhai Hospital in Ahmedabad, which is run by the municipal corporation.
Senior advocate Sanjay Parikh, appearing for the petitioner NGO Swasthya Adhikar Manch, told a bench comprising Justices P S Narasimha and J Bagchi that the trials were carried out without the oversight of an ethics committee—an essential requirement under the New Drugs and Clinical Trials Rules, 2019.
The claims were supported by media reports, including those published in the Times of India, and were submitted through an affidavit as part of a broader petition. The plea highlights how multinational pharmaceutical companies are allegedly bypassing regulatory safeguards, exploiting trial participants, and treating them as “guinea pigs.”
The NGO also pointed out that after the matter came to light, the Ahmedabad municipal commissioner constituted an inquiry committee. According to its report, significant irregularities were found, and the committee recommended action against those responsible.
The court has now asked the central government to respond to the allegations.
