Socialist Voice interviewed Doctor Sourov Misra, a member of the core committee of the Resident Doctors Association, which is leading the doctors’ strike. He is a junior doctor at the School of Tropical Medicine, Calcutta. He is a postgraduate in MD Tropical Medicine and is a third year resident.
Justice for R.G. Kar is the slogan of the protesting doctors. It is the name of the college. In India there is a rule that the rape victim should not be named. Instead of naming the victim, they have named the institution as a reference to the victim.
SV: On August 9, a junior resident was raped and murdered at R.G. Kar Hospital in Calcutta, can you tell me who did it and the context of the crime?
The civilian volunteer (police/hospital security) was seen on CCTV footage by the police, which was verified. He was the only one to leave the building at 4 am. The murder took place in the doctor’s room or seminar room, where the doctor usually took her break.
This tragedy has shaken the doctors of West Bengal and India. The murder took place in her hospital where she was a resident, which is supposed to be a safe place. She was working a 36-hour shift – there are no guidelines on how long shifts should be – and she was on a break. Junior residents work the shifts they are told to work.
We saw that the autopsy report showed multiple injuries and that the injuries could not have been caused by one person, so there may be more than one person involved. This complicates the situation of the crime and there are many unanswered questions in this case.
There is a history of massive corruption involving the principal (director) of the hospital, Sandip Ghosh. He was selling medical degrees for money in the hospital. There was a massive corruption racket going on in the hospital and the junior doctor had come to know about this racket and threatened to expose him. The rape and brutal murder was meant to send a message to anyone who would dare to investigate the principal.
Two years ago, another doctor filed a complaint against the corruption, but the principal was not investigated. The accused doctor was transferred and harassed by the West Bengal health department.
SV: It seems that the doctors’ protest has created solidarity in West Bengal and India?
When we started the protests, we used social media to highlight the issues we were concerned about, especially the way the state was handling the situation because the Calcutta police was trying to cover it up.
The Calcutta High Court handed over the investigation to the CBI (like the FBI in the US) and took it out of the hands of the Calcutta police. The CBI investigated and found that evidence had been tampered with, so both the hospital and the state are thought to be responsible.
The investigation is a botched job, and even the family has been harassed. When we protested on Independence Day, the ruling party thugs attacked us with a mob of 1,000 people. The police took the opportunity to crack down on the protests using a provision of the law that prevents unlawful assembly.
We did not expect such a massive response, but the widespread anger was catapulted into action by these events and there were huge gatherings in many places. They brought together men and women and many different castes. I have never seen anything like it in my 30 years. The protests started in West Bengal but spread all over India, and doctors have gone on strike all over India. There have been solidarity strikes and protests in many countries around the world. The international medical community is supporting us. We have a large number of medical colleges and doctors in India where strikes have taken place.
There was also a strike in public and private hospitals and clinics, except for emergency services. There was also a massive response from the non-medical community, even massive protests in the major financial centers. People are angry and involved. Massive numbers of youth, but also all sectors, and many are organized through Facebook, calling on people to join them in the streets.
This movement could bring down the state government.
SV: What are the main demands?
There are many, but these are some of them:
Justice for the victims and their families.
A proper and fair investigation.
More security in hospitals and clinics
Proper and safe toilets
Proper washrooms and restaurants in hospitals
