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 granted recognition of medical qualifications, gave accreditation to medical schools, granted registration to medical practitioners, and monitored medical practice in India. The MCI faced persistent criticism for corruption.

The Supreme Court of India authorized the Central Government to replace the medical council and to monitor the medical education system in India with the help of five specialized doctors from July 2017.

The NITI Aayog recommended the replacement of Medical Council of India (MCI) with National Medical Commission (NMC). First approved by most states, followed by the Prime Minister, the NMC bill was passed into law by parliament and approved by the president on 08-August-2019. Once the National Medical Commission came into being on 25-September-2020, the 87-year old Medical Council of India was automatically dissolved and the Indian Medical Council Act stood abolished.

The Medical Council of India was first established in 1934 under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1933. The council was later reconstituted under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 that replaced the earlier Act.

The Council granted recognition of medical qualifications, gave accreditation to medical schools, granted registration to medical practitioners, and monitored medical practice in India.

The MCI faced persistent criticism for corruption. The growth of privately run medical colleges, starting in the 1980s, presented a major regulatory challenge for the MCI. Frontline reported that corruption in the MCI was exacerbated by the amendment of 1993 (Section 10A) that gave powers to the MCI to endorse or decline the establishment of new colleges and courses in India. After 1993, the MCI neglected to maintain the Indian Medical Register (IMR) of registered medical practitioners in the country. Author Sanjeev Kelkar writes that the election process of the MCI was faulty since "those who are to be regulated get elected as the regulator."

In 2001, the Dehli High Court ordered the removal of the MCI president Ketan Desai after concluding that the organization suffered from a high level of corruption with Desai found guilty of corruption and abuse of power. Desai returned to the MCI in 2007 and was again appointed president in 2009.

The MCI was dissolved by the President of India on 15 May 2010 following the arrest of MCI's president Ketan Desai by the Central Bureau of Investigation(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. 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. Desai, the head of urology at B J Medical College and president of the Gujarat Medical Council was caught by the CBI for accepting a bribe of 2 crores to grant recognition to a private college. Desai was removed from the MCI and his registration cancelled.