West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Thursday, declared she was "ready to quit her chair" if it meant delivering justice, while also hinting that the ongoing protests by junior doctors over the RG Kar Hospital rape and murder case were politically motivated.
In her statement, Banerjee asserted her government’s commitment to engage in talks with the doctors who have been agitating for justice for the trainee doctor raped and murdered at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital last month.
The doctors' protest, which has now entered its 34th day, shows no sign of abating.
"I know most of the doctors were interested in the meeting. But we have come to know there were a handful who wanted to create a stalemate," Banerjee said, pointing towards a possible political agenda.
Without explicitly naming any political entity, the Chief Minister implied that the protests had backing from the Left.
"I am even ready to quit for the sake of justice for the common people. But they don't want justice. They just want the chair," Banerjee remarked, suggesting that the real intent behind the protests was to destabilise her government rather than seeking justice for the victim.
Failed meeting as doctors demand live streaming
The stalemate deepened on Thursday evening when a delegation of 32 junior doctors, after arriving at the state secretariat Nabanna, refused to enter the meeting room to hold discussions with the Chief Minister. The reason: a demand for live-streaming the meeting, which the state government declined.
"We have been waiting for two hours to meet our brothers and sisters among the doctors. We had written to them and they said they would come... and that is why we made these arrangements. The Chief Secretary, the Director-General of Police, Home Secretary... were all here," Banerjee told the press.
However, Banerjee was quick to add, "I have waited for two days for them to come... but we respect their sentiment and forgive them."
An empty hall and a stalemate
Visuals released by the state government portrayed Banerjee in an almost-empty auditorium, with striking blue mats on the floor and rows of chairs and tables laid out in a semi-circle before her.
Chief Secretary Manoj Pant clarified that the sticking point was the doctors' demand for live-streaming the meeting, which the state had refused.
However, two other conditions—the presence of the Chief Minister and increasing the delegation size to over 30 from the earlier limit of 15—had been agreed upon.
"We e-mailed the doctors in the afternoon and they came... we allowed all 32 to attend the meeting. But they demand live-streaming... we said this cannot be allowed. We have said we will record it," Pant said.
The doctors, however, stood firm, insisting that they would not attend the meeting unless all their demands were met.
Police: Live streaming "unreasonable"
West Bengal’s top police officer, Director-General Rajeev Kumar, termed the demand for live-streaming "unreasonable," stating, "No formal meet is ever streamed live."
Kumar added, "We (also) have no issue with the number and allowed all 32 to attend as they requested."
This was the third time the doctors were invited to negotiate an end to their protest.
The previous invitations were rejected—one because it was sent by Health Secretary Narayan Swaroop, whose resignation they demanded, and another due to the absence of the Chief Minister and limits on delegation size, alongside refusal to live-stream the meeting.
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