A group of protesting junior doctors has reached the West Bengal state secretariat 'Nabanna' to hold talks with the government officials in the presence of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in order to resolve the impasse over the Kolkata doctor's rape and murder at the RG Kar hospital last month. However, the doctors remain resolute in in their previous demands, including a live telecast and a 30-member doctor delegation. They have refused to enter the meeting hall till these conditions are met.
According to sources, CM Mamata Banerjee is still waiting for the doctors to come so that the meeting, which was scheduled for 5 PM today, could commence. Bengal Chief Secretary Manoj Pant and top police officials are talking to the junior doctors.
After the doctors did not enter the hall, a disheartened Mamata Banerjee said that she waited for two hours and ten minutes after arriving at Nabanna at 4:45 PM for the meeting. She said that the government had sent a letter following which the doctors confirmed that they would participate in the talks. Chief Secretary Manoj Pant, Director General, and Minister Chandrima Bhattacharya were also present.
"We had stated that whatever discussions were needed should be done with an open mind. Talking can lead to solutions. Even before this, I waited for two days, yesterday and the day before. In our letter, the Chief Secretary had clearly mentioned everything," the Bengal CM said.
Commenting on the doctors' demand for live-telecast and the state's bargain to video record the meeting, she said: "In our letter, we had also clearly stated that we would record everything. And this recording would be available for everyone. Once before, I had a meeting with doctors that was live-streamed, but that was a different incident. In this matter, there is also a Supreme Court order, and the case is with the CBI."
Mamata Banerjee said that three video cameras were set up in the meeting hall and that the video of the talks would have been provided to the doctors after seeking permission from the Supreme Court.
Earlier today, the Bengal government wrote back to the protesting doctors again after yesterday's efforts ended in a stalemate. The government invited the doctors again for a meeting today at Nabanna but turned down their condition to allow a 30-member doctors' delegation for the talks. CM Banerjee agreed to speak with a 15-member delegation, as opposed to the previous limit of 12-13 members.
The state government also rejected their live-telecast demand and instead proposed that the meeting's video would be recorded.
A delegation of leaders from the West Bengal Junior Doctor's Forum (WBJDF) reached the secretariat at around 5:25 PM, 25 minutes past the scheduled time of commencement of the meeting. They were escorted by a pilot police vehicle. Sticking to their original demand, a team of 30 doctors have arrived at Nabanna, news agency PTI reported.
The meeting was proposed by the state to convince the doctors to restore the crippled healthcare services in Bengal to normalcy, which were hit due to the massive outrage sparked amongst the doctors after the Kolkata doctor's rape and murder.