RG Kar Rape-Murder: West Bengal junior doctors held a protest march in Kolkata on Wednesday, October 30, demanding justice for the rape and murder victim at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in August. The doctors' front had organised another similar march on Saturday, which witnessed participation from people from all walks of life. The doctors had covered 21 kilometres in the protest rally.
The protest march comes after the junior doctors ended their hunger strike on Monday, October 21, after a meeting with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The hunger strike was part of the doctors' call for justice and healthcare reform following the grisly case, which is turning controversial with each passing day.
The doctors had been demanding better working conditions and infrastructural development in the healthcare sector. Although the doctors have ended the hunger strike, they have stressed their protest will continue through other means until they get justice for the victim.
Mamata Banerjee had held a two-hour long meeting which was streamed live from the state secretariat Nabanna. During the meeting, she urged the protesting medics to end their hunger strike, stressing that their demands had been addressed. However, she rejected their request to remove the state Health secretary.
She also urged the doctors to consider their demands and urged them to persuade their colleagues to resume the duties.
The protest were initiated after the news of the rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at the RG Kar Hospital surfaced on August 9. These protests led to nearly 50 days of case-work, which eventually transitioned into a hunger strike earlier this month on October 5.
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