Madras High court on Wednesday has passed an interim injunction restraining sale of medicine through online mode till November 11. Experts say that it will be a setback to e-pharmacies

On the basis of a plea moved by the  Tamil Nadu Chemists and Druggists Association, Justice R Mahadevan had passed an interim order.

When online shopping is convenient to consumers, the online sellers are unlicensed entities which makes it risky affair for consumers. The association says that Indian laws are not updated to ban online sale of medicines legally.

K K Selvan, General Secretary of Tamil Nadu Chemists and Druggists Association, said, “Online sellers are selling drugs without having proper licence. The central government has just issued draft notification banning online sale of medicines, but there is not legal mandate for it. It is for this reason that we had gone to the court.”

The laws for pharmacies are derived from the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, The Drugs and Cosmetics Rule, 1945 and the Pharmacy Act, 1948. These laws were written prior to arrival of computers and India does not have any concrete laws defined for online sale of medicines.

The court has now directed the additional solicitor general to get instructions from the central government.