As the hunger strike by two junior doctors from North Bengal Medical College and Hospital (NBMC&H) enters its 10th day, with both now in the ICU, two senior doctors from the Federation of Medical Associations (FEMA) joined the protest today, observing a 12-hour token hunger strike.
Notably, Dr Sandip Mondal has been on hunger strike for the past three days, stepping in after fellow junior doctor Aloke Verma was hospitalised and admitted to the ICU. Another junior doctor, Souvik Banerjee, was admitted to the ICU yesterday afternoon due to complications from the hunger strike.
Given the critical situation, FEMA representatives Dr Utpal Banerjee and Dr Partha Sarathi Sarkar, the head of the orthopaedics department, began their token hunger strike in solidarity with the junior doctors. Despite his own participation in the strike, Dr Banerjee performed an emergency surgery on a four-year-old patient, underscoring the delicate balance between protest and patient care.
Interestingly, Dr Banerjee also advised the junior doctors to prioritise their health as they continue their indefinite hunger strike.
Speaking to the media, Dr Banerjee said, “The state government’s reluctance to address the junior doctors’ demands, combined with their inflexible and unsympathetic stance, is concerning. The junior doctors need to reconsider their strategies to sustain the agitation without compromising their health. The condition of those admitted to the ICU is critical.”
However, Dr Banerjee affirmed that the protest would persist, particularly in demanding justice for Abhaya, alongside broader issues such as the eradication of the syndicate system, threats, and police atrocities.
Dr Sandip Mondal further emphasized, “Though we have resumed our duties and withdrawn the cease work programme, more than two months have passed, and the state government has yet to respond positively to our 10-point demand, even as doctors continue to fall seriously ill from the hunger strike. The government remains silent, but we are determined to continue because all 10 demands are in the public’s interest.”
The West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Front (WBJDF) has been actively circulating their 10-point demand to the public.
In a public statement, WBJDF clarified: “For some time now, there has been misinformation circulating that we, the junior doctors, have shifted focus from demanding justice for the alleged brutal rape and murder of Abhaya to pursuing our own interests. It’s also being alleged that our 10-point demands are disconnected from the public interest. Though we have remained silent thus far, allowing democratic discourse to take its course, the continuous misleading of well-meaning individuals through slander and misinformation compels us to protest strongly against such baseless claims.”