Kerala High Court Says Foreign Medical Graduates Are No Longer Required To Complete An Internship In India

Following hearing three petitions submitted by Sadhiya Siyad of Thiruvananthapuram with attorney Santhosh Mathew, justice PB Suresh Kumar issued the judgment.

The petitioner completed a one-year internship at several institutions within the Dubai Health Authority following graduating from Dubai Medical College for Girls in May 2019. (DHA). She subsequently passed the DHA licencing examination and became a licenced medical practitioner.

In June 2019, the petitioner passed the screening test required by the Indian Medical Council (IMC) Act in order to qualify as a doctor in India's State Medical Register. She claimed that because she completed an internship overseas and passed the screening test, she is entitled for regular registration with the State Medical Council. The State Medical Council, on the other hand, argued that the internship, known as Compulsory Rotatory Residential Internship (CRRI), should be repeated in order to get lifelong registration.

According to section 13(4A) of the IMC Act, an individual who receives a medical qualification outside of the United States is eligible for membership on a State Medical Register after passing a screening test and completing a one-year internship. The necessity that such medical graduates undergo CRRI before claiming permanent registration is incompatible with the provisions of the IMC Act and the Act's Regulations, as according to court, and is therefore unlawful and ineffective.