Protesting doctors reject West Bengal government’s invitation, strike enters 33rd day

The West Bengal government has invited junior doctors, who have been on strike for over a month protesting the rape and murder of a trainee medic at Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital, for talks.
However, the doctors rejected the invitation, calling the language of the invite “insulting.”
“Your small delegation (maximum 10 persons) may visit ‘Nabanna’ now to meet government representatives,” read the email sent by the state’s Health Secretary N S Nigam to the protesting medics last evening, reported The Economic Times.
“The language of the communication is not only disrespectful to us doctors, it’s downright insensitive. We find no reason to reply to this mail,” said Dr Debasish Halder, a leader of the protest.
“Our protests and our ‘cease work’ will continue,” he added.
The junior doctors began their strike on August 9, hours after the body of the female trainee was found in the seminar room of the hospital.
Their protest has since disrupted healthcare services across state-run hospitals in West Bengal.
Now in its 33rd day, the strike is primarily focused on demands for the removal of top officials, including the Kolkata police commissioner and several top state health department officials.
“We had asked the state government to remove the Kolkata police commissioner, health secretary, director of health services, and the director of medical education by 5:00pm yesterday. We are open to discussion,” one of the protesting doctors said.
The Indian Supreme Court had on Monday directed the protesting resident doctors to resume work by 5:00pm yesterday.
West Bengal’s Minister of State for Health, Chandrima Bhattacharya, said the chief minister had taken a “positive approach” by extending an olive branch to the striking doctors.
“The email was sent to the official ID of the Junior Doctors’ Front at around 6:10pm. The chief minister was waiting for the doctors’ delegation to come for the meeting. She left her office at 7.30pm since there was no response from the protesters,” she said.
Meanwhile, in a separate development, the North Bengal Medical College in Siliguri expelled five third-year MBBS students, accusing them of threatening officials and fellow students.