AKHILA KARNATAKA AYURVEDA AND HOMEOPATHY Vs. SECRETARY HEALTH AND FAMILY WELFARE DEPAT GOVE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) MR. B. Veerappa, HCGA is directed to take notice for respondents 1,3 and 4.

(2.) THE first petitioner is an Association registered under the karnataka Societies Registration Act, 1960. The other petitioners are practicing in the field of Siddha, Ayurveda, Unani and Homeopathy systems of Medicines in various places in the District of Tumkur in the state of Karnataka. Petitioners 2 to 18 are the Doctors practicing at various places in the State of Karnataka as stated earlier. The case of the petitioners is that they are Vaidyas (Doctors) having a valid licence to practice based on experience in the field of Ayurveda and Unani systems and integrated Systems of Medicines from the State Council of Ayurvedic and Unani Medicines, Patna, Bihar, which is a body recognised under the Bihar Development of Ayurvedic and Unani systems of Medicine Act, 1951. One of the certificates issued by the said State Council of Ayurvedic and Unani Medicines is produced at annexure 'b'. The said certificate would relate to petitioner No. 3. The petitioners gave an application to respondent No. 2 to register them as Medical Practitioners in the filed of Ayurvedic. Their applications for registration was rejected, as against which the petitioners preferred an appeal before the Board. Since the appeal before the Board was not disposed of, a writ petition was filed in w. P. Nos. 26876/2002 to 26897/2002. This Court disposed of the writ petition, directing the Board to dispose of the appeal within a period of eight weeks. The Board pursuant to the order dated 15. 02. 2006, dismissed the appeal holding that the petitioners are not qualified for being registered as practitioners under the Act. The said order passed by the Board is questioned in this petition. The impugned order is at Annexure 'h.

(3.) MR. Arakeswara, Learned Counsel appearing for the petitioners submits that under Section 16 of the Karnataka Ayurvedic and Unani Practitioners Registration and Medical Practitioners miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1961 (for short the Act), every person who has passed a qualifying examination may apply to the Registrar giving a correct description of his qualifications and if he is armed with a Degree, Diploma or licence along with a fee or a licence is required to be registered. He also submits that under Section 21 of the Act, a person who has passed a qualifying examination as specified in the schedule to the Act can be registered as a practitioner. He did submit that none of the petitioners possess any qualifying Degree, but however, by their experience, a licence has been granted by the Bihar Institute to practice Ayurvedic Medicine. In the circumstances, he submits that the Appellate Board was not justified in dismissing the appeal nor the second respondent was justified in declining to register the petitioners to practice Ayurvedic form of medicine.