By 
17-09-2024
Stella Liantsi
South and East Asia Researcher,
Global Human Rights Defence.
From August 9th, 2024 doctors in India began to protest occasioned by the rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor inside a college in Kolkata. The doctor was found severely battered in a seminar room of the R.G. Kar Medical College where she rested after her 36-hour shift. Anger and outrage engulfed the doctors and they started protesting from then onwards seeking justice for their colleague as well as fundamental changes in the hospitals, which remain understaffed and under-resourced.
In response to the protestors’ requests, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee invited the doctors to talk and promised that she would take into consideration their demands and take appropriate steps to ensure the victim receives justice. After an earlier unsuccessful attempt at a meeting with the doctors, Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant also invited the representatives of the junior doctors, highlighting that this was the government’s fifth and last attempt to bring the doctors to the table. The government rejected the doctors’ request for live broadcasting even though they demanded a transparent meeting which included the presence of the Chief Minister, a delegation of at least thirty doctors, discussion centred around their five-point demands, and a live telecast of the meeting. Instead, the government cited that such a move would be against protocol and offered to have the meeting recorded and signed by both sides.
The doctors’ five requests included holding responsible and penalising former RG Kar Medical College and Hospital Principal Sandip Shosh, as well as holding accountable anybody culpable for the rape, murder, and any destruction of evidence. In addition, they have advocated for the resignation of Health Secretary Narayan Swaroop Nigam and Commissioner of Kolkata Police Vineed Giyal as well as the implementation of sufficient security measures for healthcare personnel and the eradication of the “threat culture” that permeates state-run hospitals.
Due to the continuous strikes on September 9th, the Supreme Court issued a reminder to the doctors to return to their jobs promptly and start working. Despite the Court’s decision and the state’s calls for negotiation, the protests have only intensified. Thousands of junior doctors have been staging a sit-in outside the Health Department’s Headquarters. In addition to their initial five requests, the doctors are now demanding the resignation of senior health authorities, including the Principal Secretary of Health and the Director of Medical Education. The Bengal Indian Medical Association stated in a press release that they support the junior doctors’ choice no matter what it may be. They highlighted that they anticipated a favourable result given the severity of the offence. However, they were disheartened by the way the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Court are conducting the investigation.
Tensions are still high with the situation of the hospital throughout the state hanging in the balance. Protests continue to intensify with the doctors’ demands for justice and structural reform remaining the centre of their struggle.
Sources and further readings:
Gordon, A. (2024, September 9). India’s Supreme Court Orders Striking Doctors to Return to Work. TIME. https://time.com/7019308/india-supreme-court-doctors-strike/. Accessed 18 November 2024.
Krishnan, M. (2024, September 2024). India: Striking doctors defy government over rape, murder. DW. https://www.dw.com/en/top-stories/s-9097. Accessed 18 November 2024.
NDTV News Desk. (2024, September 10). People’s Movement’: Junior Doctors’ Response to Court’s “Back to Work” Order. NDTV. https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/peoples-movement-junior-doctors-response-to-courts-back-to-work-order-6528754. Accessed 18 November 2024.
Gupta, S. (2024, September 14). I’m requesting, please come and talk’: Mamata Banerjee to doctors. NDTV. https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/mamata-banerjee-arrives-at-protest-site-to-meet-doctors-agitating-over-rape-murder-6563221. Accessed 18 November 2024.
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