Ranbaxy 'wins' case against UK fraud office

Ranbaxy Laboratories said it has won a two-year-old case against UK Serious Fraud Office (SFO) in the English Crown Court, a morale boosting relief to the domestic drug major.

SFO had taken Ranbaxy's UK subsidiary, Ranbaxy (UK), to court on charges of price-fixing in some of its penicillin-based antibiotics between 1996 and 2000.

The court also declined an application by the SFO for permission to appeal to the English Court of Appeal, although SFO retains a right to appeal to the Court of Appeal directly, a Ranbaxy statement said today.

SFO's action against Ranbaxy was based on complaints of alleged anti-competitive conduct in connection with the supply of penicillin-based antibiotics to the hospitals run by the UK government's National Health Service. Four other companies were also chargesheeted.

The verdict came as a temporary reprieve for Ranbaxy, which is facing allegations of selling sub-standard drugs from the US government.

Welcoming the decision, Ranbaxy, India's top drug maker by sales, said, "We are a responsible company committed to providing high- quality generic medicines at affordable prices to patients throughout the world. Ranbaxy's shares rose 1.03 per cent on BSE to end the day at Rs 462.90 on Tuesday.