The Bombay High Court (HC) will give a final hearing on July 22, 2016 on Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) issues related to notification of elections and administrative issues following repeated reminders to the state government on the contentious matter.

MMC had petitioned a month ago to the HC about putting in place a full time administrator/ registrar and also notification of MMC elections by the state government in the same petition. Meanwhile PMO has also asked the state government to address the issues at the earliest and upload the same on the PMO website in the larger public interest.

MMC had also been writing to the state government to notify elections urgently in accordance with the MMC Act to run its administration in an effective manner as the present Council's five year tenure got over on May 21, 2016.

MMC, the quasi judicial body representing 85,000 doctors in the state, had sent two letters on the same in the month of April and May this year but didn’t get any response from the state government.

The elections will pave the way for members getting elected so that they can duly appoint a full time registrar with prior permission of the state government, in accordance to MMC Act.

Since elections are pending, administration of the council is currently being run on an ad hoc basis by an ayurvedic doctor which is not in accordance with the MMC Act. Making the matter worse, the registrar appointed by the state government also holds an additional charge of Maharashtra Council of Indian Medicine (MCIM) in contravention to the provisions of the MMC Act.

In Dr Dilip Wange's case, the appointment was done by the government unilaterally as he holds additional charge of the registrar at MCIM apart from being an associate professor at an Ayuverda college.

MMC and the Medical Council of India has also petitioned to the Bombay HC opposing crosspathy practised in the state where in Ayurveda and Homoeopathy practitioners are allowed to prescribe allopathy medicines which again is not in accordance to the MMC Act.

The MMC is the state branch of the Medical Council of India (MCI) that regulates ethical practices of allopathic doctors. Any doctor who wishes to start practice has to first register with the MMC for a licence.  The MMC can cancel or suspend the licence if the doctor is found indulging in any unethical practice. By taking care of medical cases, it also ensures less burden on courts.

According to official sources, the current appointment of an ayurvedic doctor by the state government flouts two MMC laws which stipulates that a registrar can be appointed only by elected MMC members in consultation with the government, and the second, the registrar cannot hold any additional charge.   

MMC had also remained defunct from 1998 to 2010 following a Bombay HC order that suspended it due to irregularities in the election of members and maintenance of register.