Chapter III PREPARATION AND MAINTENANCE OF REGISTER.

Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 16 and 17, no person, whose name has been removed whether before or after the appointed day, from any register kept under this Act or any other law for the time being in force in India regulating the registration of medical practitioners on the ground of professional misconduct, shall be entitled to have his name entered in the register, unless his name is duly ordered to be restored to the register from which it was so removed.

(1) Any person who desires to be registered provisionally under section 25 of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956, shall make an application in the prescribed form to the Registrar and shall pay the prescribed fee. (2) Every person whose name is entered in the register under sub-section (I) shall be given a certificate of provisional registration in the prescribed form. Such certificate shall remain in force for such period as may be specified therein.

(1) It shall be the duty of the Registrar to make entries in the register, from time to time, to revise the same and to issue certificates of registration in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder. (2) The names of registered practitioners who die or whose names are directed to be removed from the register under section 22 shall be removed therefrom. (3) Any person whose name is entered in the register and who subsequent to his registration desires to record in the register any change in his name shall, on an application made in this behalf and on payment of the prescribed fee be entitled to have such change in his name recorded in the register. (4) Subject to the provisions of section 26 of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956, any person whose name is entered in the register and who subsequent to his registration obtains any additional qualification specified in the Schedule to this Act or in any of the Schedules to the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956, shall on an application made in this behalf, and on payment of the prescribed fee, be entitled to have an entry stating such additional qualification made against his name in the register. (5) Where it is shown to the satisfaction of the Registrar that a certificate of registration has been lost or destroyed, the Registrar may, on payment of the prescribed fee, issue a duplicate certificate.

(1) At such time after the publication of the notice under sub-section (6) of section 16 as the Council deems fit, and thereafter every five years, the Registrar shall cause to be printed and published a correct list of all persons for the time being entered in the register. (2) The Registrar shall cause to be printed and published annually on or before a date to be decided by the Executive Committee, an addendum and a corrigendum to the list published under sub-section (1) showing- (a) the names of all persons for the time being entered or re-entered in the register, and not included in any subsisting list already printed and published; (b) the names of all practitioners included in any subsisting list, whose names have since been removed on account of any reason whatsoever from, and not re-entered in, the register; and (c) any other amendments to the subsisting list. (3) The form of the list published under sub-section (1), the particulars to be included therein, and the manner of its publication, shall be such as may be prescribed. (4) A copy of the list referred to in sub-section (1), shall be evidence in all Courts, and in all judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings, that the persons therein specified are registered according to the provisions of this Act, and the absence of the name of any person from such copy shall be evidence, until the contrary is proved, that such person is not registered according to the provisions of this Act: Provided that, in the case of any person whose name does not appear in such copy, a certified copy under the hand of the Registrar of the entry of the name of such person on the register shall be evidence that such person is registered under the provisions of this Act.

(3) If the name of the registered practitioner is also entered in the register or the list, as the case may be, maintained under any of the laws referred to in sub-section (2) and it is removed from the said register or the said list, the Council shall if such removal comes or is brought to its notice, also remove the name of such registered practitioner from the register under this Act.\n\n(4) The Council may, on sufficient cause being shown, direct at any subsequent date that the name of a practitioner removed under sub-section (1) or (3) shall be re-entered in the register on such conditions, and on payment of such fee, as may be prescribed.\n\n(5) The Council may, of its own motion, or on the application of any person, after due and proper inquiry and after giving an opportunity to the person concerned of being heard, cancel or alter any entry in the register, if in the opinion of the Council; such entry was fraudulently or incorrectly made.\n\n(6) In holding any inquiry under this section, the Council or the Executive Committee, as the case may be, shall have the same powers as are vested in Civil Courts under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 when trying a suit, in respect of the following matters, namely:-\n\n(a) enforcing the attendance of any person, and examining him on oath;\n\n(b) compelling the production of documents;\n\n(c) issuing of commissions for the examination of witnesses.\n\n(7) All inquiries under this section shall be deemed to be judicial proceedings within the meaning of sections 193, 219 and 228 of the Indian Penal Code.\n\n(8) (a) For the purpose of advising the Council or the Executive Committee, as the case may be, on any question of law arising in any inquiry under this section, there may in all such inquiries be an assessor, who has been for not less than ten years-\n\n(i) an advocate enrolled under the Advocates Act, 1961, or\n\n(ii) an attorney of a High Court.\n\nExplanation. - For the purposes of this clause, in computing the period during which a person has been enrolled as an Advocate, there shall be included any period during which he was enrolled as an Advocate under the Indian Bar Councils Act, 1926.\n\n(b) Where an assessor advises the Council, or the Executive Committee, on any question of law as to evidence, procedure or any other matter, he shall do so in the presence of every party or person representing a party, to the inquiry who appears thereat or if the advice is tendered after the Council or the Executive Committee has begun to deliberate as to its findings, every such party or person as aforesaid shall be informed what advice the assessor has tendered. Such party or person shall also be informed if in any case the Council or the Executive Committee does not accept the advice of the assessor on any such question as aforesaid.\n\n(c) Any assessor under this section may be appointed either generally, or for any particular inquiries, or class of inquiries, and shall be paid the prescribed remuneration.

Notwithstanding anything contained in sections 16 and 21,-\n\n(a) on such date after the date of publication of the notice under sub-section (6) of section 16, as the Executive Committee may with the previous sanction of the State Government decide, and every five years thereafter, the Registrar shall cause two notices in the prescribed form to be published, at an interval of not less than thirty days, in the Official Gazette calling upon in the manner provided in clause (b) all registered practitioners to make an application to the Registrar for the continuance of their names on the register;\n\n(b) the Registrar shall, after the publication of the first notice under clause (a), send a notice by registered post enclosing therewith the prescribed form of application to the registered practitioners at their address as entered in the register, calling upon them to return the application to the Registrar for the continuance of their names on the register within forty-five days of the date of the notice. If any of the registered practitioners fails to return such application within the time specified, the Registrar shall issue a further notice to such registered practitioner by registered post after the publication of the second notice under clause (a) enclosing therewith the prescribed form of application calling upon him to return the application to the Registrar for the continuance of his name on the register within thirty days of the date of the further notice, together with the prescribed fee;\n\n(c) if the application is not made on or before the date fixed by the further notice sent by registered post under clause (b) the Registrar shall remove the name of the defaulter from the register and shall inform him of such removal by registered post:\n\nProvided that, if an application for continuance of the name so removed is made within a period of six months from the date fixed by the said notice sent by registered post under clause (b), the name so removed may be re-entered in the register on payment of the prescribed fee.

(1) Any person aggrieved by any decision of the Registrar under this Act may, within a period of one month from the date on which the decision is communicated to him, appeal to the Council which shall hear and determine the appeal in the prescribed manner.\n\n(2) Save as otherwise provided in the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956, every decision of the Council under this Act shall be final.

Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force-\n\n(i) the expression 'legally qualified medical practitioner' or "duly qualified medical practitioner" or any word importing a person recognised by law as a medical practitioner or member of the medical profession shall in all Acts of the State Legislature and in all Central Acts (in their application to the State) in so far as such Acts relate to any matters specified in List II or List III in the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India, include a practitioner whose name is entered in the register under this Act;\n\n(ii) every registered practitioner shall be exempt, if he so desires, from serving on an inquest.

The provisions of this Act are in addition to, and not in derogation of, the provisions of the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956, and of Chapter V of the Gujarat Medical Practitioners Act, 1963, containing general provisions applicable to all medical practitioners.