In accordance with the directive from the Calcutta High Court’s division bench in April, the West Bengal State Pharmacy Council (WB SPC) has recommenced the election process that was halted by the apex court’s single bench in February 2023. This followed a legal challenge by four candidates whose nomination rejections were contested.
The council has since unveiled a revised candidate list post-nomination verification, incorporating all except one of the initially rejected entries. The remaining rejection stemmed from a failure to renew registration in a timely manner. Notably, six candidates initially considered in 2022 have retracted their participation, leaving 28 candidates vying for six council positions.
Khalid Kaiser, appointed by the government to oversee the council’s electoral process, confirmed to Pharmabiz that he personally recorded interviews with all 25 previously rejected candidates, emphasizing his commitment to transparency and adherence to court instructions. Additional nominations, he noted, are unnecessary as the process continues under judicial guidance.
This resumption arrives as an extension of the 2022 election attempt, a event delayed since 2007. In 2022, the council received 35 nominations but forwarded only 10, prompting four disqualified applicants to legally contest the council’s decisions in front of the high court.
Following the single bench’s directive to reincorporate the four complainants, the council sought relief from the division bench, resulting in mixed judicial opinion. Despite differing judgments, the third bench’s order favored reintegrating all initially excluded contenders, compelling the WB SPC to comply with it and resume the election as decreed. The final decision was reached on April 16, 2024.
In line with the latest court ruling, the council rescheduled the election for November 6, with postal ballot participation slated from December 23 to December 26, 2024. The deadline for ballot receipt is January 27, 2025, with counting commencing on January 30, and results expected by February 4, 2025.
The council has published an electoral registry including 28,000 voters from over 45,000 registered pharmacists in West Bengal. A public sector pharmacist in Kolkata has questioned the initial nomination rejections, suspecting intentional exclusions, and noted the voter list appears incomplete relative to the registered pharmacy professionals.
As the election approaches, key pharmacy organizations have initiated campaigns to garner support. Four prominent associations— Pharmacists Association of West Bengal (PAWB), West Bengal Progressive Pharmacists Welfare Association (WBPPWA), Progressive Chemist and Druggist Association (PCDA), and Young Pharmacists Forum (YPF)—have united under a new coalition, the United Pharmacists Forum (UPF), to participate in the elections slated for December 2024 and January 2025.
UPF’s candidate roster includes Prof. Sanmoy Karmakar of Jadavpur University, private sector pharmacist Nita Mandal, student pharmacist Surajit Barik, community pharmacy owner Rusha Poddar, retired government hospital pharmacist Abhoy Kumar Maity, and pharmaceutical entrepreneur Munshi Nure Jaman.