Junior Doctors Meet Mamata Banerjee at Her Residence After ‘Final Invitation’

Kolkata: Kolkata’s protesting junior doctors, after two failed meetings with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, arrived at her Kalighat residence for a third round of talks. The West Bengal government termed this as the “fifth and final invitation for discussions.” Unlike previous attempts, this time the talks began successfully.

Around 30 doctors, escorted by a pilot police vehicle, reached Banerjee’s residence at 6:20 pm. The meeting, scheduled to start at 5 pm, finally began around 7 pm.

Earlier meetings, including one on Saturday, had failed as the two sides disagreed on whether the discussions should be live-streamed or recorded, with the video handed over to the doctors immediately afterward. On both occasions, the doctors arrived but left without engaging in talks. Viral pics of the CM sitting alone in the state secretariat and footage of her inviting the doctors for tea at her residence had circulated widely.

This time, the majority of conditions were agreed upon in writing ahead of the meeting. The doctors brought stenographers to document the discussions, while the government recorded the meeting on video. The doctors also stressed that they would respond to the government’s stance only after consulting their peers at the protest site. Importantly, they remained firm on their five-point demands.

The ongoing protest seeks justice for the rape-murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor, which has triggered over a month-long impasse. Despite a Supreme Court order urging the doctors to return to work, the protests in Bengal continue, even as other states have ended their ceasework. The protests have received widespread public support in Bengal.

Chief Minister Banerjee had assured doctors last Thursday that no punitive action would be taken against them, contrasting this stance with Uttar Pradesh’s handling of similar situations.

However, she expressed concerns over the impact of the strike on patient care, noting the rising number of fatalities. The government claimed over 20 deaths were linked to the doctors’ absence, though the doctors dismissed this, arguing their absence alone cannot cripple the healthcare system, given the large number of registered doctors in the state.