Junior doctors in Visakhapatnam march in protest against Kolkata doctor rape-murder case

On 13 August 2024, junior doctors and medical students from Andhra Medical College (AMC), King George Hospital (KGH) in Visakhapatnam, organised a protest march from Pangal Bhavan in AMC to Jagadamba, demanding justice for the victim of the ‘R G Kar case’, where a 31-year-old female trainee doctor was brutally raped and murdered. in Kolkata’s R G Kar Medical College and Hospital. The gruesome incident, which took place on 9 August 2024, has outraged the entire nation, and the medical community in India have been proactive in seeking swift justice for the victim.

Junior doctors across India have been organising protests and ceasing work to support the cause. In that vein, voices and banners of protest rose high in Visakhapatnam today as the Andhra Medical College wing of the AP Junior Doctors’ Association (AP JUDA) took to the streets. Marching from the Pangal Building to Jagadamba, students sent strong messages through signs.

Some of the written messages read ‘Justice for our colleague. Justice for all’, ‘No more silence. We demand justice.’ One sign showed a doctor hanging himself with his stethoscope, with the text reading ‘Hands that heal should not bleed’ and ‘I am not a terrorist. I am a doctor, and I don’t deserve to die at my workplace’

Slogans like “Stop the silence. End the violence!”, “Hum ek hai (we are one)”, and “The attacks against us must be stopped”, were also chanted.

Speaking to the press, one participant of the march commented, “The heinous crime committed against a postgraduate woman in West Bengal is highly condemnable. That’s why every doctor here is boycotting all medical services except emergency services and standing in the strike.” Emphasizing that security is a basic right for any human, she continued. “As we provide so many services in hospitals, it’s up to the government to ensure our safety. Central Protection Right for doctors should be enforced.”

The medical professionals at KGH also said that apart from this incident, doctors face violence on a weekly and monthly basis. “Crimes should be controlled, and our security should be increased. How will we work in a workplace that doesn’t feel secure? It’s terrifying that such an incident has happened to a woman doctor. So, the entire nation is standing with her. We demand justice for her death, and our protection.”, said a participant.

“The committing of such a heinous crime against a fellow doctor is causing fear among us. We have a responsibility to lend her our support. We want action to be taken against everyone involved in this incident. This is our demand.”, said another junior doctor at the march of protest in Visakhapatnam.

As the nationwide protest against the rape-murder of the female doctor in Kolkata’s R G Kar Medical College and Hospital continues, medical professionals and students in Visakhapatnam are taking a stand with the victim.