3 weeks ago
Bombay High Court orders Maharashtra doctors to call off strike
Some doctors in a place called Maharashtra stopped going to work because they were upset about a new rule.
The rule lets doctors who practice homoeopathy also give regular modern medicine after finishing a short six-month course.
The striking doctors worried this might not be safe and wanted the rule changed.
But when doctors stop working, sick people in hospitals cannot get help.
A big court called the Bombay High Court told the doctors to go back to work right away.
The court warned that doctors who refused could stop getting their pay.
The court said everyone has the right to protest, but not when it could hurt patients.
The doctors' group, called MARD, said it would call off the strike.
The court also asked two legal experts, Vineet Naik and Amogh Singh, to help make rules so doctors cannot go on strike like this again.
The court will meet again on September 8 to talk about the rule.
The Bombay High Court on Thursday ordered resident doctors across Maharashtra to call off their strike immediately, warning that salaries could be stopped if they failed to resume work.
The court took suo motu cognisance of the strike, saying agitation is a legal right but cannot be exercised at the cost of patients' lives.
The Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD), through president Dr Atharva Shinde and Indian Medical Association counsel S U Kamdar, assured the court the strike would be withdrawn.
Nearly 7,000 resident doctors launched the indefinite strike from Wednesday against an MMC notification allowing homoeopaths who complete the six-month Certificate Course in Modern Pharmacology (CCMP) to register and prescribe modern medicines.
The court appointed senior counsel Vineet Naik and advocate Amogh Singh as amicus curiae to help frame directions preventing future strikes, and posted the matter for hearing on September 8.
- Who
- The Bombay High Court bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad, and the Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD), led by president Dr Atharva Shinde.
- What
- The court ordered resident doctors across Maharashtra to immediately call off their strike against the registration of homoeopaths under the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) and their permission to prescribe allopathic medicines.
- Where
- Maharashtra, India, with the order issued by the Bombay High Court in Mumbai.
- When
- Thursday, August 6; the indefinite strike had begun the previous day, Wednesday.
- Why
- The court intervened over concern for the health of thousands of patients in hospitals across the state, saying agitation cannot come at the cost of patients' lives.
Protesting Resident Doctors
Court and Government
Homoeopaths prescribing allopathic medicine
Protesting Resident Doctors
The Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors opposes the government's decision permitting homoeopaths to register under the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) and prescribe allopathic medicines, and has threatened to stop ICU services if the impasse continues.
Court and Government
The Maharashtra Medical Council issued a June 30 notification allowing homoeopaths to prescribe modern medicines after a six-month Certificate Course in Modern Pharmacology (CCMP), and the High Court had earlier refused to stay the registration of eligible CCMP-qualified homoeopaths.
Doctors going on strike
Protesting Resident Doctors
Resident doctors launched an indefinite strike, treating it as their legal right to agitate for their demands.
Court and Government
The Bombay High Court said agitation is a legal right but it cannot come at the cost of patients, warned of stopping the doctors' wages, and asked for a petition to frame directions preventing future strikes.
Key facts
- Court
- Bombay High Court
- Bench
- Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad
- Striking body
- Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD)
- Dispute
- Registration of homoeopaths under the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) and permission to prescribe allopathic medicines
- MMC notification
- June 30 - homoeopaths may prescribe modern medicines after a six-month Certificate Course in Modern Pharmacology (CCMP)
- Strike began
- Wednesday, called by nearly 7,000 resident doctors across Maharashtra
- Amicus appointed
- Senior counsel Vineet Naik and advocate Amogh Singh
- Next hearing
- September 8
Quotes
Bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad
Senior judges of the Bombay High Court
“"Why are you resorting to a strike at the cost of patients? Tomorrow you may succeed in your agitation, but then will you be able to bring back the lives of those patients who may have died during the strike?"”
theprint.in
deccanchronicle.com
freepressjournal.in
Dr Atharva Shinde
President of the Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors
“"We have agreed to call off the strike after the court’s directive."”
deccanchronicle.com
Sources
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