Bengal junior doctors call off hunger strike on request of RG Kar victim's parents after meeting with Mamata Banerjee

The decision was announced by Dr. Debasish Halder, a representative of the junior doctors, after a General Body meeting following a detailed discussion for two hours with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at the state secretariat Nabanna.

Halder said: "Since many supporters from the civil society including Abhaya's parents have requested us to withdraw the hunger strike, therefore respecting their demands, we are ending our fast unto death."

"A number of issues have not been discussed in the meeting with the Chief Minister. The body language of the government officials was not positive at all. But at least a promise to hold elections at medical colleges has been made," he added.

Along with the hunger strike which was underway in downtown Kolkata, the junior doctors, who had confronted the Chief Minister on a number of fronts, called off the scheduled complete strike at the health sector on Tuesday.

On their decision to not go on a complete health strike on Tuesday, Dr. Halder said: "We don't think the administration cares about the general people, and taking such a drastic step would trouble the people."

Elaborating on the meeting with the Chief Minister, he said: "We have been asked time and again why we are demanding committees to be established in medical colleges, let us make it clear these are required for the eradication of threat culture and sexual harassment. The Chief Minister has agreed to hold elections in March 2025."

However, the doctors expressed disappointment over the Chief Minister's refusal to remove principal health secretary Nayaran Swaroop Nigam.

"We took a file listing all the allegations against the Principal Health Secretary but we were not allowed to discuss the same over there."

"Although the honourable CM promised to look into our demands and give out directives related to our meeting, we didn't see a positive gesture from the administration. We were not allowed to speak on threat culture. She said why we didn't inform her about the threat culture before but we think she knows all about these as such allegations were raised repeatedly in the past," Debasish Halder said.

The meeting between the junior doctors and Mamata Banerjee occurred on a 10-point demand made by the medics.

The medics made the demands to make a "threat-free", "reformed" health service in the backdrop of the rape and murder of the 31-year-old trainee doctor, who is referred to as Abhaya or Tilottama.

The meeting saw some altercations too with Mamata Banerjee agreeing to some of their demands but refusing to remove the principal health secretary Nayaran Swaroop Nigam.

Banerjee said without any proof, no individual can be held accused and therefore action cannot be taken right now. "You cannot accuse anyone without proof," she said.

The meeting, held on the 17th day of the fast unto death by a section of protesting doctors, was streamed live for the first time from the state secretariat Nabanna even though that was not announced.

Banerjee urged the junior doctors to end their fast, asserting that most of their demands had been met, although she rejected their request for the removal of the state health secretary.

"At RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, several junior doctors and medical students were suspended without following proper procedures. How can these students or resident doctors be suspended based solely on complaints? Who granted the college authorities the right to take such actions without informing the state government? Isn’t this a 'threat culture'?" she questioned.

In response, Dr. Aniket Mahato, an agitating doctor who was hospitalised after five days of fasting, stated that those suspended "have been very much part of the threat culture and don't deserve to be doctors.

"If needed, the state government can assess their performance and then decide. The atmosphere at the medical college has been poisoned by these individuals masquerading as students. A review of their answer sheets would show that they don't even deserve passing marks," he added.

The junior doctors launched their hunger strike earlier this month after the state government failed to meet their 24-hour deadline for addressing their demands. They had been protesting for over two months now after a fellow junior medic was brutally raped and murdered at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on the intervening night of August 8 and 9.

Earlier, the rape-murder incident had triggered a total ceasework by the junior medics in two phases amid the ongoing CBI investigation into the crime.

Though CBI has named civic volunteer Sanjoy Roy, who was arrested by Kolkata Police, as the only accused in the first chargesheet, the junior doctors suspect the crime was committed by more than one.

The CBI arrested former RG Kar principal Sandip Ghosh both in the rape-murder case as well as the financial irregularities at the state-run medical college and hospital.