(1) The State Government shall, by notification, within three years of the commencement of this Act, establish a State Medical Council for Indian System of Medicine in that State if no such Council exists in that State.
(2) Where a State Act confers power upon the State Medical Council to take disciplinary actions in respect of any professional or ethical misconduct by a registered practitioner of Indian System of Medicine, the State Medical Council shall act in accordance with the regulations made, and the guidelines framed, under this Act:
Provided that till such time as a State Medical Council for Indian System of Medicine is established in a State, the Board of Ethics and Registration for Indian System of Medicine shall receive the complaints and grievances relating to any professional or ethical misconduct against a registered practitioner of Indian System of Medicine in that State in accordance with such procedure as may be specified by regulations:
Provided further that the Board of Ethics and Registration for Indian System of Medicine or, as the case may be, the State Medical Council shall give an opportunity of hearing to such practitioner before passing any order or taking any action, including imposition of any monetary penalty, against such person.
(3) A practitioner of Indian System of Medicine who is aggrieved by the order passed or the action taken by--
(a) the State Medical Council under sub-section (2) may prefer an appeal to the Board of Ethics and Registration for Indian System of Medicine and the decision, if any, of the Board of Ethics and Registration for Indian System of Medicine thereupon shall be binding on such State Medical Council, unless a second appeal is preferred under sub-section (4);
(b) the Board of Ethics and Registration for Indian System of Medicine under the first proviso to sub-section (2) may prefer an appeal to the Commission.
(4) A medical practitioner of Indian system of medicine who is aggrieved by the decision of the Board of Ethics and Registration for Indian System of Medicine, may prefer an appeal to the Commission within sixty days of communication of such decision.
Explanation.--For the purposes of this Act,--
(a) "State" includes Union territory and the expressions "State Government" and "State Medical Council for Indian System of Medicine", in relation to a Union territory, shall respectively mean the "Central Government" and "Union Territory Medical Council for Indian System of Medicine";
(b) the expression "professional or ethical misconduct" includes any act of commission or omission, as may be specified by regulations.