Deciding Authority: The Supreme Court of India
Name of the Judges: S.Rajendra Babu, K.G. Balakrishnan & P. Venkatarama Reddi
Date of Judgement: 08/03/2002
Facts:
Writ Petitions were filed in different High Courts by persons who had undergone courses in medicine in medical colleges in the erstwhile USSR. After disintegration of USSR, their admissions ran into difficulties either not having studied in recognised colleges or partly in recognised and partly in non-recognised colleges or they had not completed their courses in full. The Medical Council of India (for short ’MCI’) also entertained serious doubts as to the genuineness of some courses undergone by various students, thus leading to difficulties on the question of recognising their degrees and their registration as Medical Practitioners. MCI took the stand that when their initial admission in non-recognised institution could not be accepted, their transfer to recognised colleges subsequently cannot be of any benefit. MCI also passed various types of orders either during the pendency of the proceedings before the courts or otherwise in relation to recognition of the degrees or registration of such persons as practitioners. The Delhi High Court allowed those writ petitions and granted reliefs to the concerned doctors which orders stood affirmed on appeal, while Allahabad High Court granted interim order, which stood affirmed on appeal MCI is in appeal before this Court.
Judgement:
Section 13 of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 [hereinafter referred to as ’the Act’] has been amended by Act No. 34 of 2001 which would cover situations as arising in the present cases. The Regulations for conduct of the screening test and for issue of Eligibility Certificate by the MCI to the students proceeding abroad for studies in medicine have been approved by the Government of India and sent to the MCI. Under the provisions of the Act a person has to successfully complete compulsory internship of one year after getting provisional registration and all persons who applied for provisional registration and have to do the internship on or after 15.3.2001 will be required to quality the screening test as per the provisions of the Screening Test Regulations, 2002, as they would become eligible for permanent registration on or after 15.3.2002, that is, after successful completion of one year internship. However, the Government noticed that there are a number of persons who have applied to the MCI for grant of provisional registration after completion of their degree abroad prior to 15.3.2001 and have not been granted provisional registration by the MCI for the various reasons, such persons fall into following categories :- (a) Those who did not undergo the complete duration of six years of the medicine course from institutes recognised by MCI; (b) Those who did not fulfil the minimum eligibility criteria for joining medical course laid down by MCI at the time of their admission in the medical institutions abroad, particularly in the erstwhile States of USSR; and (c) Those who came back with medical degree which are not recognised by the MCI.
Decision:
The case of all persons who applied for registration to MCI prior to 15.3.2001 shall be dealt with according to the provisions of the Act as existing prior to the commencement of the IMC (Amendment) Act, 2001 subject to the following :- (i) Those students who obtained degrees where the total duration of study in recognised institutions is less than six years (i.e. where a part of the study has been in unrecognised institutions, or the total length of study in a recognised institution is short of six years), shall be granted registration by MCI provided that the period of shortfall is covered by them by way of additional internship over and above the regular internship of one year. In other words, for such categories of students, the total duration of study in recognised institution plus the internship, would be seven years, which is the requirement even otherwise. (ii) Where students who did not meet the minimum admission norms of MCI for joining undergraduate medical course, were admitted to foreign institutes recognised by MCI, this irregularity be condoned. In other words, the degrees of such students be treated as eligible for registration with MCI. (B) All students who have taken admission abroad prior to 15.3.2002 and are required to qualify the Screening Test for their registration as per the provisions of the Screening Test Regulations, 2002 shall be allowed to appear in the Screening test even if they also come in the categories of circumstances contained in A(ii) above, as the relaxation contained therein would also be applicable in their case. In other words, any person at present undergoing medical education abroad, who did not conform to the minimum eligibility requirements for joining an undergraduate medical course in India laid down by MCI, seeking provisional or permanent registration on or after 15.3.2002 shall be permitted to appear in the Screening Test in relaxation of this requirement provided he had taken admission in an Institute recognised by MCI. This relaxation shall be available to only those students who had taken admission abroad prior to 15.3.2002. From 15.3.2002 and onwards all students are required to first obtain an Eligibility Certificate from MCI before proceeding abroad for studies in Medicine. (C) The categories of students not covered in A(i) & (ii) above and whose entire period of study has been in medical college not recognised by MCI, will be allowed to appear in the Screening test for the purpose of their registration provided they fulfil all the conditions laid down in the IMC (Amendment) Act, 2001. In other words, the qualification obtained by them must be qualification recognised for enrolment as medical practitioner in the country in which the institution awarding the same is situated and they must be fulfilling the minimum eligibility qualification laid down by MCI for taking admission in an undergraduate medical course in India. They shall not be entitled for any relaxation.
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