Practitioners of Electro Homeopathy may operate without a ban, but cannot confer degrees or use the title 'Doctor' until statutory recognition is established.

JUDGMENT

Om Prakash Shukla, J.

The petitioners claiming to have obtained Certificate from the respondent no.5-Count Mattei Association to practice Electro Homeopathy System of Medicines, has approached this Court by way of the present writ, praying inter-alia for quashing the order/circular dated 25.11.2003 (Annexure-1) issued by the Union of India and Government Order dated 01.06.2004 (Annexure-41) issued by the State of Uttar Pradesh. A direction for non-interference by the respondents and consequential relief of permitting them to practice Electro Homoeopathy system of alternate Medicine in the State of Uttar Pradesh, till the rules in that regard are framed by the competent authority, has also been sought by them. Reliance is placed upon a judgment of the Delhi High Court (Annexure-14 and 15), which according to them, stands affirmed by the Supreme Court (Annexure-16 & 17).

2. Heard Shri. Vikas Singh, learned Counsel representing the petitioners, Shri. Raj Kumar Singh, learned Counsel representing the respondent no.1/Union of India, learned Standing Counsel for the State/respondents no. 2 to 4 and Shri. Murli Manohar Srivastava, learned Counsel representing the respondent no.5.

3. During the course of arguments, inviting our attention to the order dated 05.05.2010 issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of Health Research, Government of India, New Delhi, learned Counsel for the petitioners has submitted that as the order dated 05.05.2010 (supra) clarified the position that the order dated 25.11.2003 does not bar the development and research of Electro Homeopathy and there was no proposal to stop the practice or imparting of education in the field of Electro Homeopathy as long as same was done within the parameters of order dated 25.11.2003 till such time a legislation was enacted, the petitioners do not wish to press for reliefs relating to quashing of Order/Circular dated 25.11.2003 (supra) and Government Order Dated 01.06.2004 (supra) and they have confined their prayer to the other reliefs as mentioned in this writ petition.

4. Shorn off elaborate factual details of the present case, it would be apt to mention that the petitioners claiming to be resident of District Hardoi and Faizabad, respectively, have obtained Certificate from the respondent no.5-Count Mattei Association to practice Electro Homeopathy System of medicines. According to them, by virtue by the said certificate, the petitioners can practice Electro Homeopathy System of medicine in State of Punjab, State of Delhi, State of Maharashtra, State of West Bengal, State of Kerala and other States. However, the petitioners with the said certificate were not permitted to practice in Electro Homeopathy System of Medicine in the State of U.P. as till date State of U.P. has not made any law in this regard. In this background, they pray for the limited prayer of non-interference by the State/respondents and permitting petitioners to practice Electro Homeopathy system of Medicine in the State of Uttar Pradesh.

5. The learned Counsel for the petitioners elaborating their arguments have submitted that

(I) In compliance of the order dated 11.10.2010 passed by this Court in Writ Petition No. 3992 of 2004, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (Department of Health Research), Government of India, has issued an order dated 21.06.2011, clarifying that the order dated 25.11.2003 and order dated 05.05.2010 would be treated as instructions of the Government of India, relating to practice, education and research with regard to alternative system of medicine like Electropathy, Electro Homeopathy etc. According to the learned Counsel, a bare perusal of the order dated 21.06.2011 reveals that there was no legal impediment in imparting education as long as no degree/ diploma is awarded/issued for that course and that the practitioners of Electro Homeopathy are not allowed to pre-fix 'doctor' before their name.

(II) The Government of Uttar Pradesh had issued