Padma Awardee Doctors Write To PM, Seek New Law For Safety

Over 70 Padma Awardee doctors have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about violence against doctors and other healthcare workers. They have also demanded swift and decisive action against the perpetrators of the heinous crime in Kolkata and called for a separate law to deal with violence, physical and verbal, against doctors, medical professionals and medical institutions.

"It is clear that stronger measures are desperately needed to prevent such atrocities. We call upon law enforcement agencies, policymakers, and society at large to take immediate and decisive action,"the doctors wrote, citing the rape-murder of a 31-year-old doctor in Kolkata.

Also included was a wishlist that covered stricter enforcement of existing laws, harsher and time-bound punishments for perpetrators of sexual violence, enhanced safety measures in hospitals and medical institutions among others.

Regarding a new law, they wrote, "A proposed bill, "The Prevention of Violence Against Doctors, Medical Professionals and Medical Institutions Bill," has been ready since 2019 but has not yet been tabled in Parliament for passage and adoption".

"We strongly believe that an ordinance to this effect can be brought immediately, and the bill should be passed post-haste so that all those working in healthcare delivery systems in the country can work without fear, in service of suffering patients,"they added.

Referring to the rape-murder of the young doctor in Kolkata, they sought that it be allowed to become a "catalyst for real, lasting change".

"As recipients of one of the nation's prestigious civilian honours, we feel a deep responsibility to speak out and demand timely action and appropriate changes," they added.  

The furore over the rape-murder of Kolkata has not abated after 10 days, despite the takeover of the case by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

Today, after the police cancelled a football match, supporters of arch-rivals East Bengal and Mohun Bagan gathered near the Salt Lake stadium to protest against the rape-murder. As the protests spilled onto the busy Eastern Metropolitan Bypass and blocked traffic, the police used batons to control the crowd and detained some of them.