Supreme Court: In a writ petition challenging the arbitrary and unreasonable inaction on the part of the respondents in failing to initiate the process of Compulsory Rotating Medical Internship for Foreign Medical Graduates (‘FMGs’) from the States of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, a Division Bench comprising BV Nagarathna and KV Vishwanathan, JJ. issued a notice to National Medical Commission (‘NMC’)returnable on 01-09-2025.
The NMC, through its notification dated 18-11-2021, promulgated the National Medical Commission (Compulsory Rotating Medical Internship) Regulations, 2021 (‘CRMI Regulations’). Rule 3 of these regulations unequivocally stated that CRMI shall be an integral part of the undergraduate medical education degree. The CRMI regulations mandated that medical graduates must undergo rotational postings in all clinical departments of a hospital. Moreover, Rule 4 of the CRMI Regulations placed a statutory bar on granting permanent registration to any medical student who had not completed the CRMI in India, as outlined in Schedule II of the CRMI Regulations.
The petitioners, who had successfully completed their undergraduate medical degrees from foreign universities, had returned to India with the bona fide intent of serving the country. Despite having appeared for and successfully cleared the NBE Screening Test, thereby becoming fully eligible to undergo the CRMI, the petitioners were left in a state of uncertainty and distress, as the respondents had failed to issue any notification to commence the internship since January 2025.
It was submitted that the inordinate and unexplained delay had resulted in the petitioners remaining unemployed for the past six months, causing severe financial hardships and unjustifiably impeding the progression of their professional careers. It was pointed out that, except for the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, most other states across the country had already commenced the CRMI process for FMGs. The FMGs from Kerala and Tamil Nadu were being arbitrarily and discriminatorily denied the opportunity to complete their CRMI, thereby depriving them of the right to earn a livelihood and contribute to the nation’s healthcare system.
Thus, the petitioners prayed for a direction to the respondents to initiate the CRMI process for FMGs and immediately allocate the CRMI to the petitioners.
[Association of Doctors and Medical Students v. National Medical Commission, 2025 SCC OnLine SC 1722, decided on 12-08-2025]
Advocates who appeared in this case:
For Petitioner(s): Ms. Tanvi Dubey, AOR, Mr. Yash Dubey, Adv., Mr. Mekala Ganesh Kumar Reddy, Adv., Mr. Vansh Chauhan, Adv., Mr. Yugal Jain, Adv.
Please do the needful for FMGEs of Tamil Nadu. It is truly heartbreaking and disheartening for us and our families that even after completing our medical degrees with immense hardship and successfully clearing the FMGE, we are still not allotted any hospitals for our internship. It has been more than six months since we passed the exam, yet the internship process has not begun.
Our peers from other states have already started their internships, which makes us feel left behind and deeply disappointed. We humbly request that the concerned authorities take immediate action and expedite the internship allotment process for FMGEs in Tamil Nadu.
As one of the FMG doctors from Tamil Nadu, I am also facing the same delay. It has been several months since we cleared the FMGE in 2025 Jan with immense effort and dedication, yet the internship process in Tamil Nadu has not even started.
Many of our peers from other states have already joined their internships, while we are still waiting without any clear communication from the authorities. This prolonged uncertainty is affecting our career timeline, morale, and mental well-being.
We earnestly request the concerned officials to expedite the internship allotment process and ensure that FMG doctors of Tamil Nadu are not left behind any further.