Doctors call off strike after HC reprimand

“There may be a number of reasons but you can’t just resort to a strike,” said the division bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra V Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad. “You are doing this at the cost of patients. If 50 patients die and you finally succeed in your demands, will you be able to bring them back to life? Not one patient should die,” they reiterated, while warning that they could pass an order stopping the wages of the doctors on strike.

The MMC had issued a notification on June 30, permitting homoeopathic doctors to prescribe allopathic medicines after completing the one-year Certificate Course in Modern Pharmacology (CCMP). MARD demanded immediate suspension of the CCMP registration process until a court hearing the issue gave its final verdict.

During the hearing on Thursday, senior advocate Suresh Kamdar, appearing for the IMA, questioned the government’s policy, saying youngsters studied for years to clear their NEET exams but homeopathy practitioners, just by completing what he dubbed a “six-month course” could practice like MBBS doctors. “How can this be permitted?” he demanded. Kamdar, however, told the court that the strike would be withdrawn immediately.