Delhi High Court: In a writ petition filed, seeking issuance of mandamus against respondents to grant conditional permanent registration to practice as a doctor. A Single Judge bench of Subramonium Prasad, J*. rejected the plea for granting provisional registration to practice as a medical practitioner due to pendency of criminal case over petitioner.
The Court stated, “Till the criminal proceedings are not decided and the Petitioner is not acquitted, the Petitioner cannot be registered as a medical practitioner in the country.”
Background:
In an instant case, petitioner studied from Tver State Medical Academy, Russia, and received the diploma certificate for qualification in ‘General Medicine- Doctor of Medicine’ on 24-06-2005. The said degree was equivalent to an MBBS degree in India. Under the Screening Test Regulations, 2002, a person who has acquired a degree from a foreign country has to clear a Foreign Medical Graduate Examination conducted by the National Board of Examinations to be eligible for registration as a medical practitioner in India. The petitioner took the said examination.
Delhi Police, Vasant Vihar registered a case on the basis of complaints given by the officials of the National Board of Examination that certain impersonators were appearing in the examination on behalf of the candidates for the foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE).When these impersonators were questioned they revealed that they appeared on behalf of the said candidates and the identity proof of the impersonators did not match with the physical features of the candidates who had to appeared in the said exam. The petitioner was one the candidates on whose behalf an impersonator was taking examination, and the Petitioner was arraigned as an accused.
Analysis-
The petitioner while being on bail approached this Court and stated that on the basis of results which have been declared for FMGE 2008, the Petitioner be provisionally permitted to practice medicine in India, subject to the outcome of the criminal proceedings emanating out of the said First Information Report (FIR) for offences under Section 419, 420, 468, 471, 120-B IPC. Though, as per National Board of Examination counter affidavit, petitioner was advised to take examination once again in order to seek permanent permission to practice medicine in India.
The Court remarked “The Petitioner cannot be permitted to be registered as a doctor to treat patients in the country on the basis of the fact that it is yet not certain as to whether the Petitioner did take the examination conducted by the NBE which is a condition precedent of a person who has obtained a foreign degree to be registered in the country as a medical practitioner. Till the criminal proceedings are not decided and the Petitioner is not acquitted, the Petitioner cannot be registered as a medical practitioner in the country”
The Court was of the view that due to the alleged accusation that somebody else appeared in examination of FMGE on behalf of petitioner, and as the petitioner was arraigned as an accused along with pendency of a criminal case, no provisional permit to practice medicine in India can be granted to the Petitioner.
However, the Court held that it is always open for the petitioner to take the examination once again.
[Dr Arun Kumar Soni v. Medical Council of India & Anr, 2024 SCC OnLine Del 3546, decided on 10-05-2024]
*Judgement Authored by: Subramonium Prasad, J.
Advocates who appeared in this case :
For Appellant:
For Petitioner: H.K. Chaturvedi, Anjali Chaturvedi, Megha Chaturvedi, Ramaditya Jadon and Sagar Chaturvedi, Advocates.
For Respondents:
Respondent-1: T Singhdev, Anum Hussain, Abhijit Chakravarty, Bhanu Gulati, Aabhaas Sukhramani, Tanishq Srivastava, Advocates.
Respondent-2: Kirtiman Singh, Central Government Standing Counsel, Waize Ali Noor, Varun Rajawat, Mr. Kartik Baijal, Varun P. Singh and Shreya V. Mehra, Advocates.
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