Supreme Court upholds April 26 Maharashtra Medical Council Polls

The state approached the court following a committee’s recommendation to remove elected posts within the council. It also proposed amendments to the existing law governing the MMC to replace the electoral system with a nomination-based process for appointing members. While the proposal was aimed at future implementation, the government attempted to fast-track the change by requesting the immediate cancellation of the upcoming polls. However, any modification to the MMC Act would require an ordinance, a process that is yet to be completed.

Sections of the medical fraternity have welcomed the court’s refusal to intervene. Many doctors have expressed concerns that the move to dissolve the elected body could be aimed at enabling the inclusion of practitioners of homoeopathy into modern medical practice.

The elections are scheduled for 26 April 2025, and controversy continues, with some members alleging that around 72,000 doctors have been removed from the voters’ list. 

Former MMC member Dr Suhas Pingle told Times of India, “The government can now delay the nomination of other members to not allow the elected council to function. This will create a situation where the council cannot be formed as per the rules, even as there are elected representatives.” The incident goes back to 2009. "Nominated members are political appointments, and there were 100s who wanted those few seats. We had to approach the court back then, and even after the court's order, it took the then govt two years to nominate members," said Dr Pingle.

Multiple doctors' associations also warned that they will seek the court’s intervention again if a similar situation arises. A new MMC framework has been proposed that includes a president, four ex officio members from govt departments, two registered medical practitioners, and six members with established standing or experience in medical education, clinical practice, public health, medical ethics, hospital administration, health policy, health economics, and law. At present, the council consists of 18 members, with nine nominated by the government and nine elected by registered medical professionals.

The MMC election has been facing hurdles for a long time now. Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that the apex court ordered the holding of the MMC elections within three months. Issuing directions in this regard to a newly appointed returning officer (RO), the Apex Court said that the process would start from the beginning by the concerned RO while following all the required processes mandated by the law.