Union Minister Chirag Paswan on Sunday criticized West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for staging a protest against her own government, claiming it highlights the TMC administration’s weakness in the state.
“If you, as the Chief Minister, take to the streets, are you assuring the public of justice or creating an atmosphere of fear among them? This clearly reflects Mamata Banerjee’s weakness. If the Chief Minister of a state protests against her own government and administration, it indicates a lack of control. It suggests that perhaps the machinery of your state is not under your control, which is why there is an atmosphere of anarchy in Bengal,” Paswan told reporters.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Shehzad Poonawalla also criticized the Trinamool Congress, accusing it of “destroying evidence” and condemning the silence of INDIA bloc leaders regarding the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.
“Instead of apprehending the culprits who ransacked RG Kar Medical College, the TMC government is cracking down on citizens, doctors, and opponents. They are involved in destroying evidence. The leaders of the INDI alliance—Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Vadra, Mallikarjun Kharge, and Priyanka Chaturvedi—are all missing in action. None of them have spoken a word. The order to transfer 43 doctors was withdrawn, claiming it was a routine order. Why was it withdrawn? It was done to intimidate the doctors,” Poonawalla remarked.
Earlier today, students and junior doctors continued their protests in Kolkata despite the heavy rain. Protests by doctors have also erupted in several states, including Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and Mumbai.
In response to the situation, the West Bengal Governor’s Office has alerted medical colleges across the state to increase security and ensure adequate protection for women doctors and paramedics.
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“Today, Raj Bhavan contacted Medical Colleges in the State, instructing them to beef up security and ensure that women doctors and paramedics are adequately protected,” the Raj Bhavan Media Cell stated in a post on X.
Additionally, football fans protested near Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, leading to the cancellation of the Durand Cup match between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal.
The protests were sparked by the alleged rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor on August 9 while on duty at RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata. The incident has led to nationwide strikes and protests by the medical community.
On August 14, the protest site and the hospital campus at RG Kar were vandalized by a mob, forcing security personnel to intervene and disperse the crowd.
In the midst of the ongoing protests, the Kolkata Police imposed Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (formerly Section 144 of the CrPC), around the Medical College and Hospital for seven days, effective August 18.
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