Rape and murder case in Calcutta: Doctors demand death penalty for accused

Resident doctors protest at Connaught Place in New Delhi on Sunday. | Photo credit: SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA

Resident doctors of several government and private hospitals in the city held a candlelight march at Connaught Place on Sunday demanding death penalty for the accused in the rape and murder of a doctor at the government-run RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata.

Carrying posters and banners, the demonstrators carried leaflets to alert people to the security risks they face while carrying out their duties.

On the occasion, they also shouted slogans demanding the immediate implementation of a central law that protects medical personnel from any kind of violence while performing their duties.

“We don't want people and the government to treat this as mere news. A woman was abused at her workplace and we want justice,” said Gollapalli Divya, a fourth-year student at Lady Hardinge Medical College.

Shreya, a junior doctor at Max Hospital, demanded the harshest punishment for the accused in the Kolkata case. “The punishment should be commensurate with the magnitude of the atrocities committed. All those involved in the case should be given the death penalty,” she said.

“Protests will continue”

While people shot videos and expressed their solidarity with the protesters, local doctors said the boycott of outpatient clinics and scheduled services in city hospitals would continue until their demands were met.

Arushi, a third-year student at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, said that while doctors are not allowed to go on strike under the Essential Services Maintenance Act, their protest is a result of the fact that their safety concerns have not been addressed for a long time.

“Emergency services are functioning in all hospitals. The hospitals have specialist doctors who ensure that patients do not have to suffer,” she added.