Ahmedabad:
The Medical Council of India (MCI) has urged the CBI to prevent council's former disgraced president Dr Ketan Desai from traveling to Canada to attend a medical conference being organised by the World Medical Association (WMA) next week.
In a letter sent to CBI director Ashwani Kumar in New Delhi on October 7, the MCI has pointed out that the recent release of Desai's passport by a court means he will be able to travel to Vancouver in Canada between October 13 and 16 for the conference.
The letter notes that the Indian Medical Council (Amendment) Act, 2010, came into force on May 15, 2010 and from that day, the MCI stands superseded and its president, vice-president and other members have vacated their offices. Upon supersession of the council, a board of governors consisting of six members of eminence is performing all the functions of the council.
The supersession of the MCI was subsequent to the arrest of Desai on April 22, 2010 by the CBI for his alleged involvement in corruption cases.
The action by the current office-bearers of the MCI came after the body was alerted by the media that Desai had been permitted by the court to travel to Canada to assume the charge of office of WMA president at the conference.
"Dr Ketan Desai has no authority, as per law, to represent the MCI or doctors of India in the Vancouver conference. He has fraudulently obtained the order granting him permission to attend the conference purportedly on behalf of MCI,'' said the letter.
A group of physicians - People for Better Treatment (PBT) - has approached the WMA to withdraw the invitation given to Desai. PBT president Dr Kunal Saha at Ohio said: "We appreciate MCI's move and would join them in pressing the CBI to get Desai back in jail. We have also approached Dr Ed Hill, WMA chairman, to take immediate steps to withdraw the invitation given to Desai."
The MCI letter says the CBI should prefer an immediate appeal against the order of the learned magistrate directing the release of Desai's passport.
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