After withdrawing their fast-unto-death, the protesting junior doctors in West Bengal on Saturday held a mass convention and decided to hold a march to the CBI's office in Kolkata on October 30 demanding justice for the RG Kar victim.
The mass convention was held at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. The doctors from various state-run medical establishments, representatives of civil society and celebrities from the Bengali entertainment industry organised a 'candle and fire torch' rally after the convention.
One of the agitating doctors Aniket Mahato said, "It's been more than two-and-a-half months since our beloved sister was tortured and murdered and we still don't know who the real culprit is. So, at today's mass convention, we have decided to hold a rally to the CBI office at CGO Complex on October 30."
On Saturday, the West Bengal Junior Doctors' Forum (WBJDF) organised a mass convention to plan their next move towards seeking justice for the RG Kar victim and to ensure that the state government fulfils their demands.
Six-hour long convention
The convention that went on for over 6 hours saw addresses by 32 forum representatives, civil society representatives and celebrities. The participants also discussed the threat culture allegedly prevalent in various state-run hospitals, besides steps to be taken to exert pressure on the state government to make it fulfil their demands.
Mahato said, "We have called this mass convention to seek justice for our sister, who was raped and murdered at RG Kar Hospital on August 9." Moreover, another agitating doctor Debasish Halder further added, "The protest started by a few doctors has now taken a massive shape. We wanted to know what happened at the seminar hall of the hospital (where the body was found). We had no idea that this movement would continue for so long and we would get the support of so many people."
Fast-unto-death called off
Notably on October 21, the junior doctors called off their fast-unto-death following a meeting with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who assured them of looking into their demands. They started the hunger strike on October 5.
On Saturday, the junior doctors also alleged that attempts were made to suppress the truth about what led to the rape and murder of the on-duty post-graduate trainee doctor at the RG Kar Hospital and that there were attempts to protect the culprits behind the incident.
Kinjal Nanda, another agitating doctor, said, "We wanted to know what was the truth and that is why we had pressed for a magisterial inquiry. There have been attempts to suppress the truth. We not only want justice but we also want to cleanse the system."
(With PTI Inputs)
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