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The Karnataka High Court while observing that Public Interest Litigation (PIL) which has been filed only on assumptions and presumptions cannot be entertained by the Court, dismissed a PIL praying to quash the Certificate of Registration granted in favour of respondent No 8 (clinic).
R C Nagaraj , counsel for the petitioners vehemently submits that respondent No.8 has obtained the Certificate of Registration by misleading the Authorities that the Diagnostic Centre is situated beyond 300 meters from the Government Hospital.
He invited the attention of the Court to the Certificate of Registration which shows that the period of validity of Certificate of Registration is from 31.10.2022 to 30.10.2027.
He submits that Clause (2) of the Certificate of Registration makes it clear that any contravention of the Act and Rules shall result in suspension or cancellation of the Certificate of Registration before the expiry of the said period of five years apart from prosecution.
He further submits that the petitioners have engaged the services of a private Consultant and the report of the private Consultant shows that the distance between the Diagnostic Centre established by respondent No.8 and the Government Hospital is 45.15 meters which is less than 200 meters. He also submits that the petitioners have made a representation dated 25.01.2023 to the respondents, but the same has not been considered and as such, they are before the Court.
The Division Bench of Chief Justice Prasanna B. Varale and Justice M.G.S. Kamal held that though at first blush, the submissions of the learned counsel for the petitioners look very attractive, but after going through the material placed on record and the provisions of the Karnataka Private Medical Establishments Act, 2007, the Court opined that the PIL cannot be entertained.
Section 6 of the said Act deals with pre-requisites for registration of Private Medical Establishments. By way of amendment, a proviso is inserted to Section 6 of the Principal Act, a copy of which is produced as Annexure-E to the writ petition. It reads as under:
“Provided that no new Private Clinical Laboratory shall be permitted within a radius of 200 meters from the Government Hospital or from the Hospital promoted or managed by a society or trust or autonomous organization owned or controlled by the State Government or Central Government or Local Bodies with effect from the date of commencement of the Karnataka Private Medical Establishments (Amendment) Act, 2017.”
Section 6 starts with the words “The Registration Authority”. “Registration Authority” is defined in Section 4 of the said Act as under:
“4. Registration Authority.- There shall be a Registration Authority in each district consisting of the following members, namely.-
(a) The Deputy Commissioner of the district Chairman
(b) District Health and Family Welfare Officer Member-Secretary
(c)President/Secretary, Indian Medical Association of the concerned district – Member
(d) District AYUSH officer – Member
(e)President/Secretary, the AYUSH Federation of India of the concerned district – Member”
The above composition clearly indicates the representation of various expert bodies in the Registration Authority such as, Indian Medical Association, AYUSH Federation of India etc.
Section 7 of the said Act deals with the procedure for disposal of applications. It reads thus:
“7. Disposal of applications.- (1) On receipt of an application under Section 5, the Registration Authority may, having regard to the provisions of Section 6 and after such enquiry as may be necessary, by Local Inspection Committee, either grant registration subject to such conditions as may be prescribed or reject the application:
Provided that the Registration Authority shall not reject the application without giving an opportunity of being heard to the applicant and without recording the reasons for such rejection.
(2) Every order passed under sub-section (1) shall be communicated to the applicant forthwith.
(3) Every registration granted under subsection (1) shall be valid for a period of five years and may be renewed once in five years on an application made in such form, in such manner and on payment of such fees, as may be prescribed.” (emphasis supplied)
Section 8 deals with Local Inspection Committee and the duties assigned to it. Clause (1) of Section 8 refers to the composition of the Local Inspection Committee. Clause (2) states that the Local Inspection Committee, either with prior intimation or on receiving a complaint may, at reasonable time, inspect a Private Medical Establishment to satisfy itself that the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder and the conditions of registration are being duly observed. (emphasis supplied). Clause (3) refers to duties cast on the Local Inspection Committee. It states that if any defects or deficiencies are noticed during inspection, the Local Inspection Committee shall report to the Registration Authority.
Section 15 of the Act provides that no order of suspension or cancellation of registration shall be made without giving a reasonable opportunity of being heard to the Private Medical Establishment.
There is not a single word in the writ petition with regard to any deviation from the safeguards or any breach of the pre-requisites which are referred to above. It may not be out of place to state that the Registration Authority possesses the power to suspend or cancel the registration on a complaint or on its own, if it is satisfied that there is contravention of any of the provisions of the Act or the Rules made thereunder, the Bench noted.