Doctors across the country are on strike in protest against the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. Due to this, the medical system in government hospitals across the country has collapsed and patients are forced to wander from door to door. There is no one to listen to the cries of distressed and diseased patients in hospitals. Meanwhile, a senior leader of West Bengal’s ruling party Trinamool Congress (TMC) has asked how doctors will respond if security forces also go on strike demanding action against the culprits of the 2019 Pulwama attack.
Senior Trinamool Congress leader Kunal Ghosh, in a post on Instagram urging doctors to end the strike, wrote, “I have a question. There has been no justice in the Pulwama case. So, how will you view it if the jawans also leave the borders and start a strike saying ‘we want justice’?
What happened in Pulwama?
Let us tell you that on February 14, 2019, 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were martyred in a terrorist attack in Pulwama, Jammu and Kashmir, when a vehicle loaded with explosives collided with a convoy of vehicles carrying security personnel. Within two weeks of this attack, Indian Air Force jets entered Balakot in Pakistan and carried out an air strike and destroyed the training camp of Jaish-e-Mohammed.
Meanwhile, hundreds of agitating professional doctors, junior resident doctors and senior resident doctors on Wednesday took out a rally from the CBI office to the health department secretariat in Kolkata. During this rally called by the newly formed West Bengal Junior Doctors Forum, the protesters raised slogans like ‘We want justice’ and ‘No security, no duty’. Doctors and students from 31 medical institutions participated in this protest. Doctors have not been working for three consecutive days in Bengal.
Mamata government on target
The Trinamool leader’s comments on the striking doctors have come at a time when the Mamata Banerjee-led state government is facing criticism over the way it handled the heinous crime. Last Tuesday, the Calcutta High Court handed over the investigation of the Kolkata incident to the CBI, considering its sensitivity. The court has made a strong remark in its order that the Kolkata Police has not made any significant progress in this case.
Strike from Kolkata to Delhi
Resident doctors in the national capital Delhi are also on strike for the last 10 days in protest against the Kolkata incident. On Wednesday, the 10th day of their indefinite strike, the striking doctors demonstrated at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. During this, a protesting doctor said, “It is very important to understand that we are fighting for better working conditions at our workplace.” Due to these demonstrations, optional services are suspended in many government hospitals of the city. During this, slogans like ‘Punish the culprits’ and ‘This strike is necessary, not a hobby, but a compulsion’ kept echoing.
All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), GTB, Lady Hardinge Medical College and Associated Hospitals, Maulana Azad Medical College and Associated Hospitals have issued separate statements requesting people to participate in the silent protest. Members of the Resident Doctors Association (RDA) of major hospitals in Delhi are on an indefinite strike along with the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) and Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA). (With Bhasha inputs)
