Ahmedabad: The Gujarat High Court has stayed the Gujarat Medical Council’s (GMC) decision to suspend three doctors, including renowned Surat-based dermatologist Dr. Jagdish Sakhiya, for 13 months. The court has also issued a notice to the GMC, directing it to file its response by September 8.
The GMC had, on June 30, ordered the suspension of Dr. Jagdish Sakhiya and Dr. Ami Shah from Surat, along with Dr. Geeta Patel from Ahmedabad. Under the order, their names were to be removed from the State Medical Register from August 30, 2026, to September 29, 2027.
Dr. Jagdish Sakhiya is currently serving as the Organising Secretary of Dermacon International 2027. He, along with 29 other dermatologists from across India, came under scrutiny following allegations that they had accepted a sponsored trip to Monaco and Paris in 2024, funded by a multinational company. Based on an anonymous complaint filed before the National Medical Commission (NMC), the GMC was assigned the responsibility of investigating the three Gujarat-based doctors.
Before the High Court, the doctors submitted that they had attended a specialised training programme on anti-ageing treatment organised by the company. They argued that the visit was purely educational and that they had subsequently been assigned the responsibility of training other doctors in India.
Counsel representing the doctors further argued that the training agreement clearly stated that none of the participants were professionally associated with the company’s products, nor were they expected to promote them. The court was also informed that approximately 15,000 doctors from around the world had participated in the same training programme.
The doctors’ legal team additionally contended that the anonymous complaint filed before the NMC may have been motivated by corporate rivalry. They also argued that the Gujarat Medical Council had failed to follow the prescribed procedural requirements before initiating disciplinary action.
After hearing submissions from both sides, the Gujarat High Court granted an interim stay on the GMC’s suspension order and issued a notice to the council, seeking its response in the matter.
