Chennai:
The Madras High Court has ruled that no criminal proceedings can be initiated against Indian medical practitioners if they also use allopathic medicines.
Justice RMT Teeka Raman recently delivered the verdict allowing a criminal original petition by Dr R Senthil Kumar, who had sought quashing of the chargesheet filed against him in 2018 before Judicial Magistrate No.
The Block Medical Officer, Government Primary Health Centre, Panamarthupatti, Salem had raided the premises of the petitioner’s clinic in October, 2017 on the orders of Joint Director of Medical Department and found Kumar, who had BHMS in Homeopathy. medicine, was also practicing in allopathy medicine and seized it from his clinic.
Based on this complaint, the local police registered an FIR under Section 15(3) of the Indian Medical Council Act and Section 420 (cheating) of the IPC. Challenging this, the present petition has been filed.
The counsel for the petitioner referred to a circular issued by the Director General of Police, Tamil Nadu in October 2010, which said that doctors of Indian medicine should not be harassed if they also use allopathy.
Allowing the petition, the judge observed that in the light of the said circular, it is imperative that no proceedings can be initiated against any of the practitioners registered in Siddha, Ayurveda, Homeopathy and Unani, who, irrespective of the systems concerned, are practicing are eligible. Along with modern scientific medicine, surgery and gynecology also include obstetrics, anesthesiology, ENT and ophthalmology.
In the said circular, a specific request was made to the subordinate police not to interfere with the practice of registered practitioners of Siddha, Ayurveda, Unani and Homeopathy and Naturopathy, who are registered with TN Siddha Medical Council, TN Board of Indian Medicine. and TN Homeopathy Medical Council. Therefore, it is clear that without following the above instructions, the present case has been registered by the police.
The judge held that the established preponderance of law as well as a judgment on the same lines of the High Court in 2010, apart from taking note of the factual position that the petitioner is a qualified medical practitioner and having observed the seizure mahajar, said the judge. Said that they found that the law laid down in the above judgment completely covers the factual position and hence there is no hesitation in quashing the charge sheet, the judge said and dismissed the same.
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