Indian doctors resume strike over colleague’s rape and murder

Published October 1, 2024
People chant slogans as they participate in a protest condemning and marking one month since the rape and murder of a trainee medic at a government-run hospital in Kolkata, India on September 8. — Reuters
People chant slogans as they participate in a protest condemning and marking one month since the rape and murder of a trainee medic at a government-run hospital in Kolkata, India on September 8. — Reuters

Indian doctors in Kolkata said on Tuesday they had resumed a strike to protest against the brutal rape and murder of a colleague because their demands for hospital safety improvements had not been met.

The discovery of the 31-year-old’s bloodied body at a state-run hospital in the eastern city in August rekindled nationwide anger at the chronic issue of violence against women.

Doctors briefly returned to limited work in emergency departments last month but decided at a union meeting to cease work again.

Union spokesman Aniket Mahato said the West Bengal state government had failed to deliver on its promises to upgrade lighting, CCTV cameras, and other security measures in hospitals.

“The state government has failed to provide safety and security in the workplace,” he told AFP.

Mahato said doctors would return to the streets on Tuesday night to insist the government meet its pledges and to demand justice for their murdered colleague.

Tens of thousands of ordinary Indians joined in the protests following the August attack, which focused anger on the lack of measures for female doctors to work without fear.

One man has been detained over the murder but the West Bengal government has faced public criticism for its handling of the investigation.

Authorities sacked the city’s police chief and top health ministry officials.

India’s Supreme Court ordered a national task force last month to examine how to bolster security for healthcare workers, saying the brutality of the killing had “shocked the conscience of the nation”.

The gruesome nature of the attack drew comparisons with the 2012 gang rape and murder of a young woman on a Delhi bus, which also sparked weeks of nationwide protests.

Opinion

Editorial

All out
Updated 25 Feb, 2025

All out

PAKISTAN cricket captain Mohammad Rizwan’s assessment was brutal — it could not have been any other way. At ...
Bearing the brunt
25 Feb, 2025

Bearing the brunt

FOR the past several months, we have repeatedly been told by the prime minister and his cabinet that the government...
Afghan resettlement
25 Feb, 2025

Afghan resettlement

AFGHAN refugees who fled their country after the Taliban took over in 2021, and who hoped to resettle in the West,...
Taliban divisions
Updated 24 Feb, 2025

Taliban divisions

The only workable solution lies in Mullah Akhundzada loosening his iron grip on the country.
Oblivious to drought
24 Feb, 2025

Oblivious to drought

PAKISTAN faces two types of drought: one caused by dry weather or lower-than-normal rainfall, and the other ...
Digital children
24 Feb, 2025

Digital children

AS most parents with young children will agree, the easiest way to pacify a bawling child is to hand them a...