Madhya Pradesh doctor, who prescribed cough syrup, detained after 9 children die

A doctor, who allegedly prescribed the cough syrup, linked with the death of at least 9 children in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhindwara district, has been detained for questioning, a senior police officer said.

Chhindwara SP Ajay Pandey told The Hindu that Dr. Praveen Soni, a government paediatrician who also runs his private practice, was taken into custody late Saturday (October 4, 2025) night. Dr. Soni is accused of having prescribed the now-banned Coldrif syrup, that has allegedly caused the deaths over a period of one month.

Mr. Pandey said that a case has also been filed against Dr. Soni and the syrup manufacturer, Sresan Pharmaceuticals, a company based in Tamil Nadu’s Kancheepuram.

The case has been filed under BNS Sections 105 and 276, and Section 27 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.

“We are going to thoroughly interrogate him before formally arresting him. After that we will also contact the Tamil Nadu Police and seek their coordination in the investigation,” Mr. Pandey said, adding that a team led by a Deputy SP (DSP) level officer will soon be dispatched to Tamil Nadu for the probe.