Kolkata rape-murder case: Protest continues as Mamata govt rejects doctors’ preconditions for talks

The West Bengal government on Wednesday declined junior doctors’ demands for chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s presence and a live broadcast as conditions for negotiations to end the month-long ‘cease work’ protest over the alleged rape and murder of a 31-year-old woman doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9.

On the 33rd day of protests, with doctors staging a sit-in outside Swasthya Bhawan in Kolkata for a second day, minister of state for health Chandrima Bhattacharya expressed the government’s willingness to engage in talks but hinted that “political forces” could be influencing the protests.

The medics quickly refuted these claims, calling them unfounded, and vowed to continue their protests until their demands were met, news agency PTI reported

While the minister urged the doctors to respect the Supreme Court’s order and return to work, she avoided commenting on whether the government would take any punitive measures against those violating the court’s directive.

Meanwhile, the state-run RG Kar hospital postponed a hearing for 51 doctors accused of creating an atmosphere of intimidation and disrupting the institution’s democratic processes. The inquiry is expected to proceed on Friday.

In addition, TMC leaders issued subtle warnings to the protesting doctors, labeling them as “anti-nationals” and suggesting that the party might organise counter-protests.

Latest updates on Kolkata doctor rape-murder case:

The Bengal government invited the protesting doctors to a meeting at the state secretariat, Nabanna, on Wednesday at 6pm, but did not confirm if Mamata Banerjee would attend.

Chief secretary Manoj Pant, in an email, urged the doctors to send a delegation and emphasised the need to resume work in compliance with the Supreme Court’s order to return to duty by 5pm on Tuesday.

But despite the invitation, the junior doctors insisted on several preconditions before agreeing to the meeting. “We want the discussion to be held in the presence of the CM and be telecast live. We want at least 30 representatives as this movement is spread across various medical colleges and hospitals,” a member of the junior doctors’ forum said at a press conference. The government, however, stood firm on its stance, refusing to accept any preconditions for the meeting.

The stretch in front of Swasthya Bhavan, West Bengal health department headquarters, transformed into a sea of humanity as thousands of junior doctors from across West Bengal continued their dramatic sit-in protest, turning the area into a vibrant, noisy hub of dissent.

Trinamool Congress MLA Humayun Kabir said they too would organise counter-protests as people are suffering due to doctor’s agitation.

TMC leader Chandan Mukhopadhyay criticised the agitating medics for defying the Supreme Court directive to rejoin work and branded them as “anti-nationals”.

Another TMC leader Kunal Ghosh said the demand for justice is valid and “we want the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to finish its investigation and the culprits will be given the death penalty”.

On Wednesday, CBI officers conducted another round of questioning of arrested accused Sanjay Roy at the RG Kar hospital case. The interrogation was carried out at the Presidency Correctional Home.

In addition, another team from the CBI interrogated four junior doctors in the morning, and later, Kolkata Police deputy commissioner (North) Abhishek Gupta and the deputy commissioner of the detective department (DD) special, Vidit Raj Bhundesh, were questioned as part of the same investigation. “We questioned the police officers on how they conducted the probe,” an officer told PTI.

Pro-BJP intellectuals, including party leader and actor Mithun Chakraborty, took out a rally in Kolkata demanding justice for the woman doctor. Led by Chakraborty and former Union minister Subhas Sarkar, hundreds of BJP activists and saffron-leaning intellectuals participated in the rally, which was organised to commemorate Swami Vivekananda’s historic speech at Chicago’s Parliament of the World’s Religions in 1893 on this day.