Baba Ramdev vs Indian Medical Association Fracas!

What is the truth of the raging visual media cacophony involving Baba Ramdev and the Indian Medical Association?

Two messages were delivered – one Whatsapp and one email – about the background of the Indian Medical Association and Medical Council of India and the raging cacophony on visual media.

Sans prejudice and bias, an attempt has been made to review the contents of both and provide a “Perspective” to readers to draw their own conclusions.

The real battle is elsewhere – centuries old “Ayurvedha” vs “Modern Allopath” medicines. Let me not be a hypocrite. Until I got selected to join the Indian Army, I had never taken an injection. The first TT was taken in 1959 and I shrieked with all the noise my system could blurt out seeing the big needle.

Subsequently, my tryst with “Allopath” was when I was afflicted by “Chronic Asthma” after the Bangladesh War 1971. Initially, it was treated as “Bronchitis”; but later “Cortisones” were used to make recovery. At the Amritsar Medical College, the medical expert advised to improve my lung capacity. I took in earnest way to “Pranayam” and achieve the ability to hold my breath for over 2 minutes.

Today, at the age of 83, I suffer from multiple diseases – pacemaker, spondilitis, osteo arthritis and the threat of Covid – 19. I do my regular walks for one hour and take “Haldi ka Doodh” every night before going to sleep besides blood thinners and BP medicines.

In sum, it is a mix of Allopath, Ayurvedha and Yoga that keeps me going strong till date. For me, therefore, the verbal “Fracas” between Baba Ramdev and the President of the IMA is most unwanted and uncalled for. Both systems and add to them Homeopathy and other native herbs have their entire place in providing relief to the patient.

First, the Whatsapp message that I received from a former IAS officer is reproduced below:

“99% of the people would not know this! Indian Medical Association Vs Medical Council of India (MCI) – IMA vs. MCI: Difference of both?

IMA is an NGO created by Christian missionaries during British period in India whose job was to connect Christian doctors in India to promote Christianity under the pretext of medical help in the service in remote areas.

MCI is a constitutional institution created by Govt of India which works for the activities of medical hospitals etc across the country to confiscate or cancel doctor’s degrees etc.

Currently the President of the IMA is Dr. Austin Jaya Lal who is associated with a Christian missionary.

Now you know why IMA is after Ramdev?”

Next, extracts of email message (author Akshita Bhadauria) forwarded to me by a contact in the UK are reproduced below:

“The IMA headed by Dr John Rose Austin Jayalal, most noted for issuing letters after letters, and has launched yet another scathing attack on Yoga Guru Baba Ramdev by filing an Rs 1000 crore defamation case over his statements disusing allopath.

As head of the IMA, Dr Jayalal has made his political leanings quite clearly. What is to say that his statements do not reflect his ideology? Not just wanting to use hospitals to convert Hindus, IMA Chief John Rose Jayalal also harbors visceral hate for PM Modi.

IMA Head slams Ayurvedha but promotes 'family medicine'.

This comes after Baba Ramdev had fired 25 questions at the IMA demanding permanent cure and treatments for common ailments.

However, it is imperative to note that this is not the first time Baba Ramdev has come under fire by the IMA especially their head Dr Jayalal. Not just slamming Ramdev, but Dr Jayalal is a habitual Ayurvedha and BJP hater as well.

Here’s what his social media profile looks like

While one might think that a social media profile of a Doctor heading a medical organization would talk about healing, cures and medical advancements, one will be taken by surprise upon viewing Dr Jayalal’s Twitter profile.

Dr Jayalal has consistently targeted the leaders of the Bhartiya Janta Party including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan and UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath by sharing news (some even fake), cartoons and hash tags revealing his ideology.

As can be seen, Dr Jayalal shares frequent anti-Modi posts and cartoons to take a dig at the PM. As head of the IMA, he has made his political leanings quite clearly. What is to say that his statements do not reflect his ideology?

The Christian doctor has been actively and aggressively hounding Baba Ramdev and his company since the onset of the pandemic for his contribution against the battle. From calling him a quack to discrediting Ayurvedha completely, Dr Jayalal has been at it since quite a while. Ayurveda medicines as well as Yoga over centuries have been proven to help patients with chronic illnesses along with other medical science. For one to work, other need not be totally discredited.

He has also led concerted attacks on the Ayush Mantralaya and was the one who initiated protests against the Centre allowing Ayurvedha practitioners to perform surgery. Calling it a ‘Say No To Mixopathy’ campaign, he spent months giving interviews, lectures and seminars slandering Ayurvedha under the garb of the new rule amidst the raging pandemic.

The IMA doctors went on a hunger strike to protest the new notification and even held ‘meme and poster’ contests thereby distributing ‘gifts’ to the winners to fuel the protests. A worrisome screenshot shared by Dr Jayalal himself reveals how a plan was being brewed to make it an anti-Farm Bills like protest since “nothing could happen from this hunger strike.Dr Jayalal also extended support to the farmers’ protest wanting to show the government in a poor light.”

My search for realities through Wikipedia revealed the following:

• The IMA, established in 1928, a registered society, is a national voluntary organization of Doctors of Modern Scientific System of Medicine in India, which looks or cares after the interest of doctors or the well being of the community at large: over 3,054,580 member doctors through more than 1,700 active local branches in 29 States and UTs.

• The IMA, headquartered in Kolkata, is a founder member of the World Medical Association.

• Surgeon Dr J.A Jayalal is current national president of the IMA.

Whereas, the key facts of the Medical Council of India (MCI) are given below:

• Statutory body, first established in 1934 during British in India and later Re-constituted under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956.

• Dissolved on 15 May 2010 following the arrest of MCI's president Ketan Desai by the CBI and others booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

• For establishing uniform and high standards of medical education in India until 25 September 2020.

• The Supreme Court allowed the Central Government to replace the medical council and with the help of five specialised doctors in July 2017.

• National Medical Commission (NMC) bill was passed by Parliament and approved by President on 8 August 2019

• Establishment and maintenance of uniform standards for undergraduate medical education, Accreditation of medical colleges.

• Regulation of postgraduate medical education in medical colleges accredited by it. The National Board of Examinations is another statutory body for postgraduate medical education in India.

• Recognition of medical qualifications granted by University or UGC and foreign medical qualifications in India.

• Registration of doctors with recognized medical qualifications-Indian Medical Register.

• During the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, the MCI made necessary guidelines for the telemedicine treatment in India which was unethical till now. These regulations helped patients to consult their doctors during the pandemic without the need to visit the hospital.

Most important, the Ministry of Ayush ((Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy), albeit established in 2014, was erstwhile a Department since early five-year plans to promote indigenous medical systems.

Successive five-year plans had allotted considerable focus to alternative, especially indigenous, forms of medicine within the healthcare sector. Numerous committees set up by the Government of India for the development of the healthcare sector (Bhore (1946), Mudaliar (1961) and Srivastava (1975)) which emphasized upon the improvement of traditional systems of medicine in India.

The National Health Policy (1983), National Education Policy in Health Sciences (1989) and National Health Policy (2002) highlighted the role of Indian School of Medicine (ISM) and Homeopathy (H) in improving healthcare access and asked for enabling its penetration to the rural masses.

Thus, politics by opposition political parties to decry “Ayurvedha” blatantly exposes their hypocrisy. Let me cite the example of Arvind Kejriwal – regular visitor to Jindal Naturecure Institute(JNI), which is referred as the first modern naturopathy hospital in India, for cure to his diabetes. Many VIPs undergo treatment in the above institute.

Viewed in the background facts, the “Fracas” is most unwanted and uncalled for. If there is someone to be blamed for the poor medical and health infrastructure particularly in Rural India, the blame squarely rests on the IMA, the MCI and the Governments both at the Center and the States since 1947.

All of them have dismally failed “We the People of India.” Based on my tryst with multiple medical problems throughout my professional career, best it is to leave the choice to the patient to exercise.

For example, a person like me with “Chronic Asthma” unfit to serve in High Altitude/Terrestrial Areas and mountains used to find myself at home in mountains – never followed three stages of acclimatization to reach my battalion in Chola Pass in 1982 – holding the highest posts before Siachen Glacier (1984).

During the first Covid-19 wave in 2020, I used to go both in the morning and evening for regular walks on the main road without wearing the masks.

I am still surviving. Hope to survive as long as God Almighty wants me to survive.