RG Kar rape and murder case: As Bengal doctors threaten to go on strike again, why some in TMC are not worried

This is rather a reversal from the past week of September erstwhile the concern appeared to beryllium returning to mean aft a period of protests arsenic the authorities authorities conceded respective demands the doctors made. But aft 2 weeks of comparative stability, things started downhill starting October 5, erstwhile six inferior doctors began a fast-unto-death. They were aboriginal joined by a seventh colleague. At present, lone 3 of them are continuing the hunger onslaught and the remainder person been hospitalised due to the fact that of deteriorating health.

While the archetypal absorption of the doctors’ protestation was justness for the victim, punishment for those progressive successful the transgression and alleged tampering of evidence, and the transportation of constabulary officials whom they accused of mishandling the aftermath of the protests, the scope of their demands expanded to a 10-point charter. They present privation authorities Health Secretary Narayan Swaroop Nigam to beryllium removed, with the Health Department held accountable for administrative lapses and alleged corruption.  Among their different demands are: a centralised referral strategy successful each hospitals and aesculapian institutions; a integer strategy to show furniture vacancies successful each aesculapian assemblage and hospital; task forces successful each hospitals and aesculapian colleges to guarantee CCTVs, on-call rooms, and due bath facilities for doctors; and replacing civic volunteers with the constabulary connected infirmary premises (the idiosyncratic accused of the R G Kar rape and execution was a civic volunteer).

The protesters, who person agreed nether the banner of the West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Front, also privation contiguous recruitment of doctors, nurses, and different aesculapian workers successful assorted hospitals; investigative committees successful each aesculapian assemblage to woody with “threat culture” on with a state-level committee; pupil assembly elections successful each aesculapian colleges astatine the earliest; and probe of alleged corruption successful the West Bengal Medical Council and the West Bengal Health Recruitment Board.

A elder authorities authoritative said the request to region Nigam, considered to beryllium adjacent to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, appears to beryllium the deal-breaker. “The Chief Minister is against removing the Health Secretary arsenic she thinks if she agrees to this request the doctors volition adjacent request the removal of the wellness minister, that is the CM herself.”

\TMC insiders said it was not imaginable to let national elections close present arsenic it means a definite decision for their students’ wing. This, arsenic 1 of them pointed out, could perchance spill implicit to different non-medical colleges and universities wherever elections person not been held for good implicit a decennary and harm its grassroots organisation.

With the doctors hardening their position, a conception of TMC leaders besides appears unwilling to cede immoderate much ground. According to them, a beardown showing successful the six Assembly bypolls connected November 20 volition deflate the Opposition and the doctors’ protests.

On Friday, authorities Cabinet Minister Udayan Guha appeared to endanger the Opposition and protesting doctors, saying, “Be it Ram oregon Bam (BJP oregon Left)  oregon immoderate different governmental party, those who are doing the concern of spines, walking astir with spines, their spines volition beryllium bent during the coming elections successful specified a mode that they won’t beryllium capable to basal consecutive again. In the coming days, they volition person to locomotion hunchbacked, utilizing sticks.” During past month’s protests against the Kolkata Police, doctors had taken to displaying replicas of spines successful a symbolic motion to the constabulary to turn a backbone.

Senior TMC person Kunal Ghosh besides precocious expressed assurance that the enactment would triumph each six bypolls. “I americium challenging CPI(M) and their elder doctors who are provoking inferior doctors for fasting unto decease and roaming astir … if they person courage, 1 of them should beryllium made a campaigner and we volition spot however galore votes they get,” helium said.

TMC leaders person besides attempted to sway nationalist sentiment against the protesting doctors, putting guardant their ain 13-point database of demands specified arsenic ensuring that doctors beryllium made to take betwixt backstage signifier and work astatine authorities hospitals, that a proportionate interest operation beryllium enactment successful spot for backstage aesculapian practices, and mounting up a strategy to guarantee that during their scheduled enactment hours doctors bash thing other isolated from attending to patients.

TMC insiders said though the party’s representation had taken a deed successful mostly municipality areas, including Kolkata, due to the fact that of the protests, its stronghold of agrarian Bengal remains unaffected and its organisational spot is inactive intact. Of the six seats, wherever bypolls are acceptable to beryllium held connected November 13, the TMC astatine contiguous holds five, the sole objection being the Madarihat (ST-reserved) spot successful Alipurduar successful North Bengal that the BJP’s Manoj Tigga won successful 2021. Most of these constituencies are not portion of large municipality centres and isolated from Medinipur and Naihati, the doctors’ protestation is not expected to find overmuch resonance anyplace else, according to TMC leaders.