Doctors in Karnataka hold protest seeking justice for Kolkata rape-murder victim

Bengaluru: Members of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) in Karnataka on Saturday joined the nationwide protest condemning the rape and murder of a female doctor in Kolkata.

Seeking justice for the 31-year-old trainee doctor who was allegedly raped and killed in a Kolkata hospital, a protest march is being taken out by the doctors in several parts of the southern state.

In Bengaluru, the agitation is taking place at the IMA office in Chamarajpet where over 1,000 doctors are participating.

The IMA Karnataka unit president Srinivasa S told PTI that its branches across Karnataka will remain shut and there will be no OPD services anywhere.

"All we want is justice for this young female doctor who was brutally raped and killed. What happened with her is totally unacceptable. We don't want any political involvement. Just like other professionals, doctors are also working in sensitive areas and so, we want a central law to safeguard doctors," he said.

Their other demands include - setting up safe zones and restrooms for doctors in hospitals who are working round the clock, there should be sufficient number of CCTV cameras installed inside every hopsital.

Pointing to instances of assault on doctors, he said police personnel should also be deployed in hospitals to ensure security.

"We are fighting for a genuine cause. In our country, women are worshipped. When we saves the lives of people, we are called Gods and this is how our doctors are treated. They are not safe at their workplace. We don't have safe zones, restrooms for doctors who work long hours. We are always told we are working for a social cause, for a noble cause and this is how our fraternity is treated," he lamented.

Demanding safety and security of doctors at workplace, he said the future of doctors should be safe and for that, both the central and state governments should work towards it effectively.

"No emergency services across any hospitals in Karnataka will be affected due to the strike," he added.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka government on Friday suspended the leaves of the medical officers and surgeons of government hospitals.

In a circular, the Health and Family Welfare Department said all the district health and family welfare officers and district surgeons along with the administrative officers of all the hospitals should ensure that emergency services are not affected, causing trouble for people.