'Felt it was reasonable': Dr Ish Anand
prescribed British graduate James Gaskell with high quantities of the
sleeping pill Diazepam days before the newlywed and his wife were found
dead in an Indian hotel from a suspected drugs overdose
This
is the Indian doctor who prescribed huge quantities of high-strength
sleeping pills to a British graduate days before he was found dead with
his wife from an apparent drugs overdose.
Dr
Ish Anand, from Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, in Delhi, gave James Gaskell a
prescription for Diazepam last week after the newlywed said he was
addicted to the drug.
Mr
Gaskell, 27, and his young wife Alexandra were found in a hotel on
Tuesday surrounded by the sordid detritus of an apparent binge on
Diazepam, cough syrup and anti-depressants.
It
is believed the couple were victims of so-called drug tourism after Mr
Gaskell boasted online about the ease with which they could acquire
powerful medicines from doctors.
India
is seen as a honey-pot for so-called drugs tourists because of the easy
availability of prescription and over-the-counter medicine.
The
drugs industry in India has come under increasing scrutiny this year
amid claims of safety lapses, falsified drug test results and the sale
of fake medicines.
However, Dr Anand has defended his decision to offer a repeat prescription to Mr Gaskell, saying he acted 'reasonably'.
Hel
told MailOnline: 'He was addicted to these pills so it's not safe to
come off them immediately, he has to come off them slowly.
'He said he'd been on the medicine for a long time and he had come to me for a repeat prescription.
'So I gave him a different dose as a repeat prescription.
'You
need to slowly reduce your intake, it is very serious if you stop
taking them immediately, so I felt it reasonable to give him another
prescription.'
He
said Mr Gaskell 'seemed stable, calm, alert and walked well', adding:
'It was a medicine that I just continued to give him; it wasn't a new
prescription.
'He was very well informed about the medicine and I felt he knew what he was doing.’
Dr
Anand, who also has a clinic in Defence Colony, South Delhi, is
described on the centre's website as 'a distinguished neurologist, a
brilliant clinician, a teacher par excellence and a renowned
neuro-electro physiologist.'
Diazepam
is used to treat anxiety disorders, alcohol withdrawal symptoms, muscle
spasms or sleeping problems. It is sometimes used with other
medications to treat seizures.
Although
it is not known if the couple died as a result of drugs bought in
India, warnings have been issued about the dangers of seeking out
prescription medication in foreign countries.
Bhavna
Verma, 42, a clinical psychologist from Swashrit Society, said
pharmacies in India hardly ever check prescriptions and often accept
excuses for any missing paper work from doctors.
This is the harrowing final scene in
the lives of James and Alex Gaskell. The picture, issued by Indian
police, shows them surrounded by packs of the drugs that claimed their
lives. Readers may find it distressing, but the Mail is publishing it,
with the bodies pixellated, in the hope it will serve as a warning
against the horrific dangers of casual drug use
British couple James Gaskell, 27, and
his wife Alexandra, 24, (in what is believed to be their last picture)
were found dead close in their hotel room near the Taj Mahal. This photo
was posted just five days ago on Instagram with the caption 'at
Akshardham temple. Delhi isn't all grim!'
'The
availability of drugs in India is one of our biggest concerns for our
society. There are so many drugs that should only be given via
prescription but are easily available in small town pharmacies.
'Any
person who is addicted to these drugs is risking their life – they know
they can obtain as much as they want and effectively risk their
lives.'
Harry
Shapiro, director of communications of drug charity DrugScope, also
told MailOnline: 'If it's established that these drugs were purchased
over the counter in India without medical supervision then, yes, it
should serve as a warning about the dangers of that activity.
'People are buying potentially dangerous drugs without a doctor being involved.
'You
also have no way of knowing whether the drugs are safe or not. You
could be taking something that isn't what it says on the box.
'The dosage could be much higher through bad manufacture. It's obviously a high-risk activity.'
Graduate
James had been boasting for days on Twitter about obtaining drugs, and
alluded to sessions 'taking blow' with his 24-year-old wife.
On
Sunday, Mr Gaskell wrote on Twitter: 'One prescription in India (after
you have told the doctor what to write) will take you faaaaaar...'
Drugs paraphernalia: Police found
these strips of tablets - thought to be sleeping pills and
anti-depressants - next to the couple's bodies on the bed in their hotel
room along with bottles cough syrup (not pictured)
Later
the same day, he sent another boastful message, writing: 'Codeine under
the counter here. With Valium, Xanax and Lyrica. Winning.'
The
first pictures taken inside their room at Hotel Maya show strips of
coloured capsules next to their bodies as they lay slumped on the bed.
Police
officers also found five bottles of cough medicine and a prescription
for the anti-anxiety drug diazepam. A post-mortem yesterday proved
inconclusive.
Days
earlier the couple had posed happily in front the Akshardham temple in
Delhi as part of an extended trip to India where they were planning to
teach English.
Investigating
officer, Sushant Gaur, said: 'Everything points towards a drug
overdose, but we'll now have to wait for the viscera (internal organs)
report to confirm cause of death.
'They
had phones and laptops but they are password locked so we have not been
able to determine as yet their movements before their deaths.'
Clues: Police forensics officers gather evidence from the hotel room where the couple were found dead
The pair are understood to have arrived in India at the start of July.
On
Saturday, Mr Gaskell had boasted about his capacity to take more drugs
than Americans, saying: 'In India I have eaten an incredible amount of
benzos [benzodiazepines, a type of sedative].
'So Americans can stop showing off with your Xanax [powerful sedative] talk. They're really not all that.'
The
couple had left Delhi, on October 18 and checked into a hotel in Agra,
The Vindhy Residency, before checking out at 2pm the following day on
19th.
The hotel manager, Tarun Garg, 24, said: 'They seemed like a normal couple and did not cause any suspicion.
'We
have a pharmacy under the hotel but they do not deal with any retail
customers so I'm not aware that they bought anything from that
pharmacy.'
Mr
Gaskell was born in Bexley in Kent and had gone to university in
Manchester before meeting his bride, a photography student who grew up
in Stockport, the daughter of Brian and Anna-Louise Lawler.
Mr Gaskell was born in Bexley in Kent
and had gone to university in Manchester before meeting his bride, a
photography student who grew up in Stockport
Died: James Gaskell, 27, and his wife Alexandra, 24, pictured together in India just weeks before their death
James Gaskell, pictured in India earlier this month. He was found dead early Tuesday morning
And just over a week ago he wrote: 'It's not who you know, it's who you've done blow with.'
Rajesh
Gupta, owner of the Maya Hotel said: 'The couple checked in at 5pm and
went directly to the room, they didn't come out after that.'
Senior
police official, Sulabh Mathur, said: 'We found several sleeping pills
and empty bottles of cough syrup next to the bodies.
'The food that they had ordered was untouched. The bodies were stiff and we believe they had died during the night.
'We
also recovered a prescription from the Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, in
Delhi, for diazepam - a drug used to treat anxiety disorders.'
But
Mr Gaskell's shocked mother Ann, from Sevenoaks, said there were
'conflicting reports' coming out of India about the deaths.
The autopsy results are expected later today.
The couple arrived in the country in July, before visiting Agra in early October
Boasts: Mr Gaskell revealed on Twitter
the ease with which they could acquire powerful prescription medicines
from chemists in India
There
was no sign of any suicide note – just as no suicidal tendencies were
suggested by Mrs Gaskell's upbeat online reports and photographs from
their long holiday in India.
Local police said the pair had arrived at the Maya Hotel in Tajganj, Agra, at 5pm on Monday.
Hotel
manager Ibrahim Zaidi said: 'Around 6.45pm they ordered dinner. When
the waiter went with the food, the couple did not let him in, but took
the food at the door.
'They were supposed to check out the next morning.
'They did not emerge by 10am, which is our check-out time.
'A room boy knocked on their door at 11am.
He got no response, but found the door had not been bolted.
'He went inside. Seeing the bodies, he raised an alarm.'
Two police officers stand outside Hotel Maya, where the bodies of the British couple were found
The couple were found dead after checking into the Hotel Maya (above), in Tajganj area of Agra, on Monday
The two were found in their hotel room, in Agra, India, which is located near the Taj Mahal (pictured)
Food ordered by the couple the previous night was untouched.
Agra
police inspector general Sunil Kumar Gupta said: 'The cause of death
will be known once the post-mortem report is available.
'The sleeping pills and other tablets in the room point to drug overdose.'
Police spokesman Shalabh Mathur said: 'From the prescription, it appears that the woman had some sort of headache.
'A lot of antidepressants, pain killers and other medicines were found in the room.'
The officers said they understood the couple had been living in Birmingham.
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office last night said they were offering the families consular support.
DAILYMAIL.CO.UK
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