Backdoor takeover! Doctors oppose Telangana govt order to expand medical council

1) Commissioner of Health & Family Welfare, Telangana, 2) Director of Medical Education, Telangana, 3) Director of Health and Family Welfare, Telangana, 4) Commissioner, Telangana Vaidya Vidhana Panshad, Telangana, 5) Vice-Chancellor, Dr.KNR University of Health Sciences, Telangana, 6) Chief Executive Officer, Arogyasn Health Care Trust, Telangana, 7) Special/ Additional Secretary/ Joint Secretary/ Deputy Secretary to Government, HM&FW Department dealing with the subject and; 8) Director NIMS, Hyderabad.

Before this, the 25-member Telangana medical council included 13 elected representatives (the HRDA members won all of the posts), six government nominees, two members from Kaloji Narayana Rao University of Health Sciences (KNRUHS), and four ex-officio government officials- the director of medical education (DME), director of public health (DoPH), TVVP commissioner, and the KNRUHS vice-chancellor.

With the new order, the State has now added four more ex officio members to the council.

However, the move has received severe criticism and opposition from the doctors across the State as doctors' organisations, including the Healthcare Reforms Doctors Association (HRDA), the Telangana branch of the Indian Medical Association, Telangana Senior Resident Doctors Association (TSRDA), Telangana Junior Doctors Association (T-JUDA), Telangana Teaching Doctors Association (TTGDA), All India Dental Students and Surgeons Association (AIDSA) and Telangana Hospitals and Nursing Homes Association.

Pointing out that most of the newly added members are non-doctors and bureaucrats, the doctors have questioned the need for increasing the non-medical representation in the medical council, which regulates the medical education and professional standards of medical professionals.

In a recent press note, HRDA condemned the Government's move and mentioned, "By virtue of this G.O., the Government has raised the Council’s strength from 25 to 29 members, artificially altering its composition and effectively pushing the elected representatives of the medical profession into a minority. Such action amounts to a backdoor takeover of a statutory regulatory body and grossly violates the spirit and intent of the Telangana Medical Practitioners Registration Act, 1968."

"This move fundamentally undermines the statutory autonomy, professional independence, and democratic character of the Medical Council," it added.

The Association also termed the timing and intent of the G.O. as "deeply disturbing". It said that recently, the Telangana Medical Council has been spearheading a decisive and uncompromising anti-quackery drive to protect public health, ensure patient safety, and uphold ethical medical practice. "Instead of strengthening this effort, the Government has chosen to dilute the Council’s powers through executive interference, threatening to paralyze its regulatory functions," HRDA said.

Questioning how can non-doctors adjudicate professional misconduct, influence disciplinary proceedings, or determine the course of anti-quackery enforcement, the association pointed out that G.O.Ms.No.229 opens the door for nonmedical persons and bureaucrats, including IAS officers, to become members of the Telangana Medical Council under the guise of “exofficio” positions.

"A statutory body entrusted with regulating medical education, medical practice, ethics, and professional discipline cannot be populated by individuals lacking medical qualifications or accountability to the medical fraternity," it said.

HRDA has demanded an immediate withdrawal of G.O.Ms.No. 229, restoration of the democratic and professional balance within TGMC, exclusion of non-medical and bureaucratic dominance from statutory medical regulation, and protection of TGMC’s anti-quackery mandate and its disciplinary independence.

In the release, HRDA also warned that any attempt to subvert the Medical Council or derail its statutory functioning will be opposed through all democratic, legal, and constitutional means.

Meanwhile, extending unwavering solidarity with the medical fraternity in defence of ethical practice, independent regulation, and patient safety, T-JUDA has also demanded an immediate withdrawal of the concerned G.O. It has warned that if the Government Order is not withdrawn forthwith, T JUDA will be compelled to initiate appropriate democratic protests and lawful collective action, while continuing to pursue all available legal and constitutional remedies. "Public health cannot and will not be sacrificed at the altar of bureaucratic control," T-JUDA said.

IMA JDN, Telangana, also expressed similar arguments and mentioned that "Medical councils must remain profession-led, autonomous, and free from bureaucratic dominance".

Referring to G.O. 229, TTGDA said, "there is no clear rationale or justification for this move. Such an increase dilutes the representation and decision-making authority of doctors within the Council, whose primary role is to regulate medical education and professional standards. The Association cautions that weakening doctors’ representation will adversely affect the effective functioning of the Medical Council, ultimately leading to reduced professional oversight, compromised autonomy, and diminished self-regulation of the medical profession."

"TTGDA firmly believes that medical councils must remain predominantly doctor-led, as professional regulation is best ensured by those with domain expertise and accountability to patient care and medical ethics," it added.

IMA Telangana State branch has also condemned the G.O. and urged the State Government to withdraw the same "in the larger interest of democratic governance and the medical community."

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