Our legal Correspondent

Statistics show, Kerala has tuned into a safe haven for quacks. They even dare to try tricks with judicial courts to dodge criminal proceedings and penal charges. There cases of quacks giving false statements before the Court. Recently such an incident was reported from Idukki district of Kerala, where a quack masquerading as “paramparya vaidya” for decades, was arrested under charges of rape (IPC 376). To defend his case the “vaidya” affirmed before the Sessions Court that he is a “medical practitioner” who has been treating “patients” with various illnesses including infertility. On detailed investigation it was later proved that the “vaidya”, has no qualification or registration to perform as a medical practitioner, and he is a quack..

As per legal terms “medical practitioner means a person who holds a valid registration from the Medical Council of any State or Medical Council of India or Council for Indian Medicine or for Homeopathy set up by the Government of India or a State Government and is thereby entitled to practice medicine within its jurisdiction; and is acting within its scope and jurisdiction of license.”  Different High courts and the Supreme Court had on various judgments had restrained those not having proper medial qualifications and required registration from practicing medicines.

A qualified Ayurveda practitioner with over four decades of standing is deeply worried of the quacks thriving in the name of indigenous medicines and traditional knowledge.  “These frauds who claim traditional knowledge have hardly any understanding of the human physiology or the medicinal herbs. They prepare medicines without removing toxin from the raw material. Continuous consumption of such medicines can cause severe damage to liver and other vital organs.” According to a senior Herpetologist in Thiruvanathapuram, “I get at least one patient with live injury  a week who was duped by such quacks masquerading as parampariya vaidya or traditional healers.”  It is fact; most of these quacks have not even the basic education. They try to make their victims convince that they have “the blessings of their deities and Gurus” and that is the secret of their healing power.

These quacks assure their victims to cure any ailment of earth, from cancer to infertility, “with the extraordinary effect of their special concoctions.”  A senior lawyer practicing in Kerala High Court told this correspondent in confidence, “these quacks area menace to the society. They mislead those who visit them by false claims and unscientific explanations, mostly based on superstitions and religious stories.” According a social worker who has been working in the palliative care sector said “many of such quacks are not just frauds, but immoral even. At least one case is reported by the media every week on sexual abuse by such pseudo healers.” This claim was supported by a senior police officer who said “most of such cases involving molestation or sexual abuse from these quacks go un reported. The victims, mostly housewives or grown up women will usually desist from lodging any police complaint for fear of the negative publicity. The quacks take advantage of this and continue their sexual ventures on the women patients.

The Idukki case in reference is an example of such sexual predators camouflaged as “Paramparya Vaidya.”

“As per her version before the court—she and her husband reached the house of the accused having come to know that he is giving Ayurvedic treatment for infertility. When they reached there he was not there and so they waited for him. After half an hour he came and took them to the building adjacent to his house. Their names and addresses were entered in a register. She was taken to another room for examination. She was asked to lie on a desk ————— She did not disclose the untoward activities of the accused to her husband out of the fear that it would affect her family life- Quoted from the judgment of Sessions Court.

 The judgment further says that the victim told her husband about the incident during the night and the next day they went to the police station and gave a statement and a case was registered under IPC section 376, and as per proceedings the accused was arrested.

 The Idukki case is not an isolated incident.

According to a senior lawyer practicing in the High Court of Kerala “it is ridiculous, even after 75 years of independence and proper Acts in place to curb quackery under the garb of Indian Medicines if flourishing and millions are getting cheated. Despite the High Courts and Supreme Courts passing stringent directions to curb the quacks, the state and central administrations are silent. This is criminal negligence from the administration that enables the quacks to have a free run in the state and millions of lives are endangered, thanks to these frauds and their spurious concoctions.”

The judicial courts, particularly the Supreme Court had on multiple occasions passed orders against the quacks. In a landmark judgement in April 2018, the Apex Court had asked the Government of Kerala to ban those doing medical practices without the mandatory qualification from recognised institutions, and proper registration, to practice the Indian System of Medicine in the state and elsewhere in the country. The verdict was against a petition filed by Kerala Ayurveda Paramparaya Vaidya Forum and others challenging the earlier High Court judgement refusing to allow them to continue medical practice without registration. Those who violated the verdict were liable to be prosecuted under various sections of IPC with penal provisions of one year imprisonment with five lakh rupee fine.

A legal expert handling such cases further elaborated “apart from the penal provisions under the Medical Council Act, the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC) allows punishment of quacks under Section 120B (criminal conspiracy), Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), Section 420 (cheating) and 416 (impersonation).”

 In judgement in October 2020, the Kerala High Court had ruled against those engaged in medical practices without the required qualifications and registrations and recommended stringent penal proceedings including incarcerations for the violators.

In fact, with the enactment of the Travancore-Cochin Medical Practitioners Act, 1953, the ‘Paramparya Vaidyas’ (traditional healers) were debarred from practicing modern/homoeopathic/ayurvedic/siddha/unani-tibbi medicines unless registered under the Act. Subsequently, three Central Acts, viz., The Indian Medical Council Act, 1956, The Indian Medicine Central Council Act, 1970 and the Homoeopathy Central Council Act, 1973 with regard to modern medicine, indigenous medicine and homoeopathic medicine respectively came into force. These acts were passed to prevent the quacks from flourishing as “parmaparya Vaidyas” and jeopardizing millions of lives.

However, the quacks in Kerala are determined to snub the Court orders and prevailing Medical Acts and surge ahead with quackery. The nerve of the quacks like the one in one mentioned above to give a false statement in the Court that he “is a medical practitioner treating patients for the past 50 years” could be a cause of worry to those fighting to wipe out quacks and save innocent lives.

The Idukki case is a specimen on how a quack that does not have even the basic qualifications or necessary registration could mislead the court of law presenting himself as a medical Practitioner?