Dr. Ketan Desai is an Indian

urologist Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and ''-logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary-tract system and the reproductive organ ...

from Gujarat. He was head of

Medical Council of India The Medical Council of India (MCI) was a statutory body for establishing uniform and high standards of medical education in India until its dissolution on 25 September 2020 when it was replaced by National Medical Commission. The Council grante ...

in 2001 when he was removed for corruption. Desai began teaching at

B.J. Medical College, Ahmedabad B. J. Medical College (BJMC) is a public medical college situated in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. It is affiliated to the Gujarat University and Ahmedabad Civil Hospital. History Ahmedabad Medical School affiliated with Ahmedabad Civil Hospit ...

following his graduation in 1983 and served as head of the urology department from 2005 until his resignation in 2010. He was president of the

Indian Medical Association The Indian Medical Association (IMA) is a national voluntary organisation of physicians in India. It was established in 1928 as the All India Medical Association, and was renamed the Indian Medical Association in 1930. It is a society registered ...

from 2001—2003 and the

World Medical Association The World Medical Association (WMA) is an international and independent confederation of free professional medical associations representing physicians worldwide. WMA was formally established on September 18, 1947 and has grown to 115 national m ...

for the year 2016/2017.

Early life and education

Desai was raised in Gujarat’s

Maroli Maroli is a town in the state of Gujarat, India. The town is also one of the satellite towns of Surat Metropolitan Region. It is located 25 kilometers from Surat on Surat-Navsari Highway. Demographics India census, Maroli had a population of 3 ...

village. He completed his school graduation from

Hansraj Morarji Public School Hansraj Morarji Public School is a combined primary, junior and senior school in Mumbai, India. It was founded in 1939 by the Bai Kabibai and Hansraj Morarji Trust. The foundation stone was laid by Sardar Patel. The school was earlier an all-bo ...

, where his father Dirubhai Desai was a teacher for the primary section. After school, he completed his

MBBS Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

and M.Ch in

urology Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and '' -logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary-tract system and the reproductive org ...

in the year 1983 from

Career

In 1983, Desai became a professor in the urology department at B.J. Medical College in

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per t ...

after graduating from the school earlier that year. Desai was president of Gujarat Medical Council in the 1990s. He was appointed head of urology at B.J. Medical College from 2005 until his resignation in 2010. In 2001, while Desai was head of the

(MCI), he was removed for corruption after the

High Court of Delhi The High Court of Delhi (IAST: ''dillī uchcha nyāyālaya'') was established on 31 October 1966, through the ''Delhi High Court Act, 1966'', with four judges, Chief Justice K. S. Hegde, Justice I. D. Dua, Justice H. R. Khanna and Justice S. ...

found him guilty of corrupt practices and

abuse of power Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other t ...

. He served as president of the

(2001—2003) and

Dental Council of India The Dental Council of India was incorporated under The Dentists Act, 1948 to regulate dental education and the profession throughout India. It is financed by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and through the local state dental councils. ...

. Desai returned to the MCI in 2007 and was again appointed president in 2009. In 2007 and 2009, he also ran for president of the

(WMA). Desai was to be inaugurated in late 2010 but was arrested on 23 April 2010 and jailed on charges of

corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

for conspiring to extract a 20 million rupee bribe from officials at Gian Sagar Medical College in the northern state of

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

. His medical practitioner's license was suspended by the MCI on 9 October 2010. Desai became

syndicate A syndicate is a self-organizing group of individuals, companies, corporations or entities formed to transact some specific business, to pursue or promote a shared interest. Etymology The word ''syndicate'' comes from the French language, Frenc ...

and senate member of the

Gujarat University The Gujarat University is a public state university located at Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India. The university is an affiliating university at the under-graduate level and a teaching university at the postgraduate level. It is accredited B++ by N ...

in November 2010 with most of the time uncontested. In 2013, the Gujarat University senate unanimously nominated him to the MCI, though he did not join. In late 2014, he participated in a public rally with health minister

J. P. Nadda Jagat Prakash Nadda (born 2 December 1960) is an Indian lawyer and politician serving as the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) since 20 January 2020. He was the BJP's working president from June 2019 to January 2020. Nadda is the ...

of the

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...

. He served as president of the WMA for the year 2016/2017. Desai is a longtime member of Gujarat Medical Council.

Conspiracy and corruption allegations

While serving as president of the MCI, Desai was arrested by the

Central Bureau of Investigation The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the premier investigating agency of India. It operates under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions. Originally set up to investigate bribery and governmen ...

(CBI) on 22 April 2010. Desai, alleged middle-man J. P. Singh and doctors Sukhwinder Singh and Kanwaljit Singh were booked under the

Prevention of Corruption Act Prevention of Corruption Act (with its variations) is a stock short title used for legislation in India, Malaysia and the United Kingdom relating to corruption and bribery. The Bill for an Act with this short title will have been known as a Prevent ...

. The CBI recovered 1.5 kg of gold and 80 kg of silver from Desai's premises. Further, gold worth ₨ 35 lakhs were recovered from Desai's bank lockers in Ahmedabad. Following Desai's arrest, the MCI was dissolved by the President of India on 15 May 2010. However MCI continued to operate until it was fully abolished by the government on 25 September 2020 and replaced by the

National Medical Commission National Medical Commission (NMC) is an Indian regulatory body of 33 members which regulates medical education and medical professionals. It replaced the Medical Council of India on 25 September 2020. The Commission grants recognition of medic ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Desai, Ketan Indian urologists Living people People from Gujarat Gujarat University alumni Indian medical academics People from Navsari district Year of birth missing (living people)