A 75-year-old owner of a pharmaceuticals company, wanted in connection with the deaths of children in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan who consumed a contaminated cough syrup manufactured by his firm, was arrested early Thursday from his apartment in Kodambakkam, Chennai.

The arrest of G Ranganathan comes days after multiple children in Chhindwara district , Madhya Pradesh, died after consuming a locally distributed brand of cough syrup, Coldrif. The case prompted a broader probe into the manufacture and sale of substandard medicines.

A seven-member team from the Madhya Pradesh Police, led by Jitendra Jaat, Deputy Superintendent of Police, arrested Ranganathan from his residence within the Ashok Nagar police station limits in Kodambakkam.

Officers said he was taken into custody around 1

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