The Supreme Court on Tuesday raised concern over West Bengal government’s gender specific work regulations in state hospitals during the suo-motu hearing on a trainee doctor’s alleged rape and murder at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.
A bench led by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud questioned a recent West Bengal Government notification that bars women doctors from night duties and limits their work shifts to a maximum of 12 hours. L
The bench expressed concern that such a restriction could adversely impact the careers of female medical professionals.
The court said that the condition that women doctors won’t work at night will affect their careers, hours of duty should be reasonable for all doctors.
Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing the West Bengal government, clarified that the current notification is temporary, and the state intends to issue a revised one soon.
The apex court also suggested West Bengal government to consult senior officials and representatives of senior and junior doctors to carry out the process for making proper arrangements for toilet facilities and installation of CCTVs and biometric access in the hospitals
The court also directed Wikipedia to comply with its previous order to remove any content that discloses the identity of the victim.
It reiterated that maintaining the dignity of rape victims requires strict adherence to the principle that their identity should never be disclosed on public platforms.