The court was hearing a plea by two homeopathic doctors. (Representational)
The Delhi High Court asked the AAP government on Wednesday as to why it was not writing to the CCRH for carrying out clinical trials of homoeopathic medicines for prevention and cure of COVID-19 despite requests from two doctors.
"Why are you resisting it? Obtain instructions on why you (Delhi government) have not written to CCRH," a bench of Justices Hima Kohli and Subramonium Prasad said to the counsel appearing for the AAP government.
The bench issued the direction after impleading the Delhi government as party in the matter which was listed for further hearing on November 19.
The Delhi government was made a party on the suggestion by the counsel for the Ayush Ministry and Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH).
The court was hearing a plea by two homeopathic doctors, one based in Kerala and the other in West Bengal, seeking directions to the ministry and CCRH to allow doctors to treat COVID-19 by dispensing homeopathic medicines as supplement to allopathic ones if so desired by the patients.
The doctors have also sought directions to the ministry and CCRH to carry out clinical trials on three sets of homeopathic medicines for treating COVID-19 infection.
The petitioners claimed that Delhi, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, West Bengal and Kerala, which account for the maximum number of COVID-19 cases, have to write to the CCRH for carrying out the clinical trial.
They said that they were informed in June by CCRH that the state governments have to approach it for clinical trials and it cannot go to the states.
Subsequently, they wrote to the Delhi government in June itself to approach CCRH for clinical trials, however, no steps have been taken by it till date, the petitioners have claimed.