Mumbai: State govt on Thursday questioned the Indian Medical Association’s legal right to challenge amendments to two Acts that introduced the Certificate Course in Modern Pharmacology (CCMP) and allowed homeopaths to practise allopathy.“How are they aggrieved by this Act?” asked advocate general Milind Sathe, arguing before a special bench of Justices Riyaz Chagla and Farhan Dubash. The 2014 amendments were made to Maharashtra Medical Council Act and Maharashtra Medical Practitioners Act.Sathe argued that IMA is a “voluntary” association of doctors and has failed to show how it has suffered any “legal” injury because of the amendments. He said IMA cannot challenge the constitutional validity of a law merely on the ground that it disagrees with its provisions. He said it must demonstrate its locus standi and legal injury before asking HC to examine the validity of the legislation.Sathe also argued that IMA’s challenge is not based on any alleged violation of the fundamental right of doctors to practise their profession. “Is it the case (of the petitioner) their practice is being affected?” he asked. He also pointed out there was no challenge to the amendments based on Article 19 (1) (g) which protects the right to profession. Instead, IMA had questioned the state’s legislative competence to make amendments to both Acts. Sathe urged HC not to decide the validity of a law in a vacuum, “when the petitioner itself has not shown how it is affected by it.”IMA has challenged the legal framework permitting CCMP practitioners to practise allopathy. The state replied that the Maharashtra law creates a separate state-level registration regime and the provisions have existed as part of the state legislation since 1965. Also, Indian Medical Council Act regulates recognised qualifications for modern medicine at the Central level, while registration to practise in Maharashtra is governed by the state law.In Sept 2025, HC refused to stay registrations of CCMP practitioners, while making them subject to the final outcome of the main petition. It had also directed CCMP practitioners not to exceed their prescribed competency and to refer serious cases to fully qualified allopathy doctors. The arguments will continue on Friday.
