Continuation of Disciplinary Liability for Professional Misconduct Under Transitory Provisions

By operation of the statutory savings clause under Section 61(2) of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019, all regulations, requirements, and standards enacted under the repealed Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 continue in full legal force until superseded by new regulations notified under Section 57. As no superseding ethical regulations have displaced them, the Indian Medical Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002 govern the disciplinary accountability of registered medical practitioners. Under Regulation 7.22, any failure to observe ICMR guidelines during medical research or clinical trials, or securing consent for unapproved therapies outside such guidelines, constitutes actionable professional misconduct. Medical practitioners who advertise, promote, commercialize, or administer unauthorized stem cell therapies for ASD outside institutional clinical trials trigger disciplinary proceedings before their respective State Medical Councils under Regulations 7 and 8. (Yash Charitable Trust & Ors. Vs Union of India & Ors. | 2026 INSC 96).