Amway India, the multi level marketing company, which was raided by the Kerala Drug Control Department last week for allegedly selling imported drugs under the guise of food supplements without valid license, has said the court has 'temporarily released the confiscated products' to the company.

In a press note, the company said its food supplements were among the most popular products under its network in the country, and the sale of 'Nutralite' brand food products alone had helped the company to amass a turnover of Rs.176 crore during the 2002-03 period. The press note also mentioned that Amway has been selling food supplements in 88 countries under the brand name of Nutralites.

However, MP George, assistant drug controller, Kerala, who led the seizure operation, told Pharmabiz that the decision of the chief judicial magistrate, of Kochi to release the confiscated products was part of usual legal proceedings, and there was nothing for the company to rejoice in it.

"Normally when the confiscated products are produced before the court, the court may ask either of the parties or a third party to keep it in safe custody for further legal proceedings, as the court may not have facilities for storing it. It does not mean that the court has allowed them to further sell their products in the market. Even in the earlier case of seizure of Amway products by us, they were not allowed to sell those confiscated products. We did not show any objection in letting them to keep the confiscated products", said George.

He clarified that the company would have to either get a stay or a verdict from the court allowing it to sell the same products in the Kerala market. He said the decision of the company to come out with a press release on the court's decision might be part of the efforts to control the damage caused due to the seizure. He said the sales of Amway products have dipped marginally after the seizure, and this release maybe an attempt to clear the doubts in the minds of people.

Last week, the Kerala Drug Control Department had seized Rs.18 lakh worth products of Amway from its Kochi distribution centre, allegedly for selling imported drugs under the guise of food supplements without valid license. The 300 odd bottles seized by the department included 590 packs of of Nutralite kids - a multivitamin and mineral supplement, a similar product Nutrilite daily, folic acid tablets for anemia and 60 packs of a white essence cosmetic product said to have melanin content etc.