Kolkata doctor's rape-murder: Doctors’ anger continues to rage on campuses & beyond

KOLKATA: Anger continues to rage on across Kolkata, districts and beyond. Sandip Ghosh’s resignation from the post of principal at did not break ice with the protesting resident , interns and house staff. In fact, they have decided to intensify their agitation as they are not convinced with the course of investigation in the rape and murder of a second-year PGT doctor.

Medical college campuses in Bengal have been on unrest since Friday after news of the PGT doctor’s gruesome rape and murder spread like wildfire across the country. The protest that began on the R G Kar campus was soon replicated by junior doctors across the country.

“Our demand was not only for the resignation of the incumbent principal Sandip Ghosh but also that he does not occupy any administration post in any medical college. But he was appointed the principal of CNMC hours after his resignation. Our protest will be on until all our demands are met,” said a PGT doctor at R G Kar Medical College.

Students and junior doctors from different medical colleges, including IPGMER, Medical College, CNMC and NRS, marched to R G Kar Medical College on Monday evening. A general body meeting was being held till late into the night chalking out the next course of action.

“There were promises of beefing up security after the Paribaha Mukherjee incident at NRS Medical College. Now a PGT gets raped and murdered in the very hospital she was on duty. Where is our security? We will not rest this time till we are convinced about the security measures,” said a junior doctor at R G Kar Medical College.

Even as the health department has cancelled leaves of senior faculty members and posted them in OPD and emergency duties, the absence of junior doctors is affecting hospital services.

The Resident Doctors’ Association (RDA) of AIIMS Delhi joined the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA) in its nation-wide strike on Monday morning, suspending all elective and non-essential services, including OPDs and patient wards.

Ten govt hospitals in Delhi have begun an indefinite strike, halting all elective services on Monday. Maulana Azad Medical College, RML Hospital, Lady Hardinge Medical College, VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, GTB, IHBAS, Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Medical College and National Institute of TB and Respiratory Diseases Hospital are participating in the strike, which began at 9 am.

Resident doctors of the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) Chandigarh on Monday held a protest.

Hundreds of resident doctors on Monday suspended their regular work and staged a peaceful rally in Jammu. Resident doctors in Maharashtra announced an indefinite strike from Tuesday.