Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court has upheld the West Bengal government’s decision to reconstitute the West Bengal Pharmacy Council, ruling that a nominated member cannot claim a right to continue once new members are duly elected or nominated under the law.
Justice Krishna Rao dismissed a writ petition challenging a state notification issued in July 2025 that reconstituted the council and inducted new nominated and elected members. The petitioner had sought reinstatement, claiming his tenure as a nominated member was valid until February 2026 and that the council had been reconstituted prematurely.
The court examined provisions of the Pharmacy Act, 1948 relating to the composition and tenure of members of state pharmacy councils.
The petitioner was first nominated as a member in October 2012 and was again nominated through a government order issued in February 2021. The court observed that the 2021 order regularised his tenure with effect from June 2018, when the earlier term of the council had expired.
On that basis, his five-year tenure ended in June 2023. As no new members were nominated or elected immediately after that date, he continued to function until July 28, 2025, when the state government issued a notification reconstituting the council.
The notification nominated five members under the Pharmacy Act and declared six registered pharmacists as elected members.
The court held that once new members were nominated and elected under the statute, the petitioner could not claim any legal right to remain a nominated member beyond that point.
It was submitted that an interim stay had disrupted routine functioning of the council, including issuing duplicate certificates, fresh registrations and disposal of statutory matters. The court dismissed the petition and vacated the
interim order.