The junior doctors of Bengal, protesting over the rape-murder of a young doctor at a Kolkata hospital, have hardened their stance after the 5 pm "back to work" deadline from the Supreme Court. Not only have they flatly refused to comply, they have also given a counter-deadline to the state government, saying it must meet their demands by 5 pm today, failing which they would hold a sit-down protest outside the health secretariat.
Hundreds of doctors are now marching towards Swastha Bhavan, located in Salt Lake on the outskirts of the city. Barricades have been erected to stop the protesters at the Swasthya Bhawan entrance and a huge police contingent has been deployed to stop the march.
The five-point demand includes the resignation of a string of people, starting with city police chief Vineet Goyal. The list also includes senior officials of the health ministry.
The doctors' move has set them on a collision course with the state government, though Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has said that she is not willing to take action against them for now and would prefer to solve the issue through dialogue.
The government has claimed that patient care has been suffering at hospitals due to the month-long protests and that 23 patients have died in this period.
The doctors have denied the allegation, accusing the government of attempting to sabotage the protest. The junior doctors have pointed out that compared to 93.000 registered doctors in the state, their number is only 7,500.
In view of that, the government's claim that the healthcare system in the state has collapsed due to the protest is a blatant falsehood, they have said.
On Monday, a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud had said the protesting doctors must resume duties by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, failing which the state government will be authorised to initiate disciplinary action against them.
At a press conference late last evening, the doctors had made it clear that they were in no mood to comply.
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