Kolkata:

The protesting junior doctors of Bengal have withdrawn their indefinite hunger strike after a meeting with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee this evening. Announcing the end to the “fast-unto-death” in Kolkata, they also called off their proposed strike across hospitals due on Tuesday.

Debashish Halder, one of the junior doctors, said, “In today’s meeting (with the CM), we did get the assurance of some directives, but the body language of the state government was not positive”.

“The common people have wholeheartedly supported us. They, as well as the parents of our deceased sister (RG Kar hospital victim), have been requesting us to call off the hunger strike, keeping in mind our deteriorating health… We are therefore withdrawing our ‘fast-unto-death’ and also Tuesday’s total shutdown in the health sector,” he said.

The doctors have been protesting since August following the horrific rape-murder of a 31-year-old doctor at RG Kar Medical College and hospital. The protest – which initially involved a 50-day cease work — escalated to an indefinite hunger strike on October 5, flagging a 10-point demand that remained un-met even after a meeting with the Chief Minister. 

Besides justice for the RG Kar Hospital victim, their demands include the immediate removal of Health Secretary N S Nigam, improved workplace security, essential infrastructure like on-call rooms, CCTV, and proper washrooms, a centralised hospital referral system and bed vacancy monitoring system.

In the two-hour meet with the Chief Minister at the state secretariat Nabanna that was live-streamed, the biggest differences cropped up over two of the demands — removal of state Health Secretary Narayan Swarup Nigam and the recent suspension of 47 doctors of RG Kar hospital who were accused of creating an air of “threat culture”. 

On the removal of the Health Secretary, which the Chief Minister had refused earlier as well, the doctors had said they had some documents to back the allegations of irregularities against NS Nigam. The Chief Minister had pointed out that no one can be called an “accused” just on the basis of allegations.

Sandipta Chakraborty, the representative in the delegation from N.R.S. Medical College & Hospital, however countered the Chief Minister. “Anyone against whom there are complaints of irregularities can be grammatically termed as ‘accused’. That same person can be termed as ‘guilty’ if his guilt is proved,” she was quoted as saying by news agency IANS. 

The 15-day hunger strike had seen many of the participating doctors fall ill and need medical attention. But their spot was immediately filled by other volunteers.

The face-off had continued through the state’s biggest festival, Durga puja, and reached its lowest point when nine people — doctors and others — were detained for shouting “We want justice” slogans at a pandal. Days before the police had stopped the proposed “Abhaya Parikrama” rallies by doctors — meant to spread awareness about their protest — at puja pandals.