APMC files review petition in High Court seeking more time and clarity on July 9 judgment in FMGs’ case

After a Division Bench of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh issued directions on July 9 that Permanent Registration be granted to a Foreign Medical Graduate (FMG) in a month of the judgment, the Andhra Pradesh Medical Council (APMC) on August 7 filed a review petition in the court seeking more time and clarity in the verdict.

In the July 9 order, the Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur, said Permanent Registration should be given to the FMGs who had compensated all the practical studies, which they had missed during the pandemic period, by taking up additional offline classes.

It also referred to the NMC’s public notice of June 19, 2024, and said if the APMC doubted the veracity of documents produced by an FMG, the burden fell on it to ensure the validity of the same.

The same Division Bench had, on August 4, given another direction for issuing speaking orders as per the norms of the NMC in respect of four petitioners who moved the court seeking Permanent Registration. The APMC sought clarity in this verdict as well.

The APMC filed a review petition following a written response from the National Medical Commission (NMC), which reportedly felt that the July 9 order of the court “will result in arbitrary relaxation of norms prescribed by it for ensuring uniform standards of study across the county.” A copy of the response is yet to be shared with the media.

According to a press release from the Department of Health, Medical Education and Family Welfare on August 8, the NMC suggested that the APMC file an appropriate application before the Division Bench seeking extension of time for complying with the July 9 verdict.

As per the release, Special Chief Secretary M.T. Krishna Babu sought clarification from the NMC on August 5 on various subjects with regard to FMGs after discussing it with Minister for Health, Medical Education and Family Welfare Satya Kumar Yadav.

The NMC, in its clarification on August 7, reportedly stated that physical study cannot be substituted by online study. It was said to have referred to the Foreign Medical Graduate Licentiate Regulations (FMGL) and Compulsory Rotating Medical Internship Regulations, 2021, which, in normal situations, required an FMG to undergo one year compulsory internship in India after completion of medical graduation in foreign medical institutions.

The NMC, as per the release, said, for those affected by the pandemic or war, in addition to one year of compulsory internship, they were required to undergo one or two more years of clerkship in India to compensate for the period of stay in India.

But, the FMGs maintained that the FMGL regulations apply to those who joined the medical course after November 18, 2021, and that they all had joined the courses before 2020.

The NMC, according to the release, clarified that compensation certificates issued by the foreign medical institutions should contain all details of academic and clinical courses. The certificates need to be authenticated by the Indian Embassies in the countries where the FMG studied their course.