A bench of the Supreme Court, consisting of CJI D.Y. Chandrachud and Justices J.B. Pardival and Manoj Mishra, conducted proceedings related to the R.G. Kar rape and murder case for the fifth day. The Supreme Court has now rescheduled the proceedings for October 14. However, today the West Bengal government informed the apex court that resident doctors are not performing their in-patient and out-patient duties.
Previously, the Court reviewed the status report submitted by the CBI, which contained concerning information regarding specific lapses by the Kolkata police. The Court also called on the protesting doctors in West Bengal to return to their duties. Additionally, the Court expressed disapproval of an advisory issued by the West Bengal Government that advised against night shifts for women doctors, stating that equal work opportunities should not be restricted for women under the pretext of protection.
Apart from this, the apex court also pulled up the West Bengal government over the installation of CCTV cameras as well as infrastructural changes such as those in the lavatories, as the Court had directed. The Supreme Court has also asked the state government why the projects have been stuck and not even halfway close to completion.
Meanwhile, the junior doctors continue with their Mashaal marches, asking for their demands to be fulfilled.
Insights from the NewsX Discussion Panel
In an exclusive discussion, NewsX delves deeper to gain better insights on the situation at hand. The panel for discussion consisted of Riju Datta, TMC Spokesperson; Dr. Keya Gupta, Senior Medical Officer; Dr. Arindam Biswas, Consultant, Dept of General Medicine; and Abhishek Banerjee, Political Analyst, with the host Devika Chopra, Editor.
Riju Datta on Doctors’ Demands
Beginning the discussion, Riju Datta spoke on the latest demands put forth by the protesting doctors to the TMC and said, “The protesting doctors right now had multiple demands; most of their initial demands, after meeting with the chief minister for which the minutes were signed by both parties, the chief secretary of the state and the junior doctors forum, 90% of those demands have been met, but there are a few demands still pending, such as safety and security within the hospital premises, installation work, and separate washrooms, etc. Today this was raised in the Supreme Court as well.” He also added that “the state has also informed the court that by the 15th of October, all these pending works will be completed.”
Dr. Arindam Biswas on Government Reassurances
Moving further with the discussion, Dr. Arindam Biswas shared his insights on the ongoing protests and discussed how the TMC government is working to reassure doctors that it is on their side. In his response, he stated: “The government is trying its best to improve security in every hospital; now they are trying to do their best, but in a government setup, we all know there is a rigmarole that we cannot ignore.”
He also said, “We have to understand that the government has to go through a process. The junior doctors are on strike; they are on a partial strike, and their lawyer tried to justify that they are doing their jobs properly, but officially they are on a partial strike. They are not doing OPD; they are doing IPD duties. So in that case, the court took a stance that as a doctor, they have to perform their job and complete their duty.”
Dr. Keya Gupta on Security in Government Hospitals
Continuing the discussion, Dr. Keya Gupta spoke on what the state government can do to persuade the protesting doctors to move on from the strike and said, “I am an ex-student of RG Kar Medical College, and now that I work in a private institute, I know the difference between a private institute and a government institute. The security in the latter is absolutely not working because anyone and everyone can come in and blame the doctor and beat them up; this doesn’t happen in a private institute.”
She also expressed, “Till now, no CCTV has been installed, and they have demanded police posting, which has not been implemented. So you see, they are boys 18-23 years of age, and their parents have sent them to study, not to get beaten up, so they have their demands.”
Abhishek Banerjee on Potential Antisocial Infiltration
Towards the end of the discussion, Abhishek Banerjee laid down his thoughts on the doctors’ protests and the possibility of it being taken over by some antisocial elements if prolonged for long. On this, he stated, “Now these doctors are not dumb, and they know that the state government is waiting out their protests. They have already reached the end of the news cycle, and in a few days there will be Durga Puja celebrations, and everyone will forget about it, so clearly they understand that once people forget about it, they know how things work in Bengal.”
He also added, “There are certain organizations that are trying to infiltrate this protest. Now you can hear the slogan ‘Kashmir Mange Azadi’; it’s a slogan raised by extreme left and liberal elements. In that case, I would request the TMC to come out of the I.N.D.I Alliance. We know who raises these slogans—the communists and Islamists—so the TMC should stop aligning with the communists and Islamists in the I.N.D.I Alliance if they want to honestly condemn this slogan.”
The ongoing situation surrounding the protests by junior doctors in West Bengal reflects significant challenges related to safety and governance in healthcare. While the Supreme Court has intervened and the state government acknowledges outstanding demands, the resolution of these issues remains critical for restoring normalcy in medical services and ensuring doctor safety.
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