HC surprised over claim of man practising homoeopathy, siddha as well as allopathy

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

Surprised over the claim of a person to have obtained educational qualifications to practice homoeopathy, Siddha as well as allopathy medicine, the Madras High Court Bench here has directed the Director of Public Health and Preventive Medicine to a file a detail counter affidavit with respect to genuineness of the institutes from which he claimed to have obtained those qualifications as well as his current status.

Justice V. Bharathidasan passed the interim order on a writ petition preferred by N. Kathalingam of Tiruchi with a plea to forbear the Health Secretary, Director General of Police, Director of Public Health, Tiruchi Collector and Commissioner of Police from interfering with his medical practice at his own hospital at Chinthamani Bazaar in Tiruchi city. He ordered that the DPH’s counter affidavit should be filed by November 23.

The petitioner, in his affidavit, claimed to have completed a course in homoeopathy and got his name registered with the Medical Council on April 15, 1976. Subsequently he completed a course in Siddha medicine too and registered his name with the council in 1998. “Further, I have also completed my course in allopathy medicine also from the Hippocrates Institute besides completing a training in first aid,” the affidavit read.

Claiming to have been providing medical treatment to people in Tiruchi for the last 35 years without any complaint from his patients, the petitioner said: “I got my name registered as allopathy doctor as well as siddha and homeopathy with the State Government of Tamil Nadu... I am giving treatment in my hospital in the system of allopathy, siddha and homeopathy and refer serious and complicated cases to famous private hospitals and government hospital.”

Further, “it is pertinent to mention that I cannot be termed as a quack since I am not claiming as a doctor who has completed the MBBS course or Master’s course without any valid degree... The term quack is applicable only to those who falsely claim to be a doctor without possessing qualifications... Yet, the respondents, in the guise of enquiry as if I am conducting my profession in an illegal manner, are harassing by calling me to the police station now and then,” he said.

Stating that the officials had time and again attempted to close down his hospital, the petitioner sought to restrain them from interfering with his profession.

File counter affidavit regarding genuineness of institutes from which he claimed
to have studied