Kolkata Doctor Rape and Murder Case Live Updates: Doctors' 24-hour nationwide strike ends; 'hospital security should not be less than airport', IMA writes to PM

Kolkata: Kolkata Doctor Rape and Murder Case Live Updates: Union Health Ministry has announced its decision to form a committee which shall suggest measures to ensure the safety of healthcare professionals in the country.

Kolkata Doctor Rape Case, IMA Nationwide Strike Live, August 17: The 24-hour nationwide strike called by the Indian Medical Association (IMA) in protest against the rape and murder of the woman doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, which began at 6 am Saturday drew to a close at 6 am this morning. Meanwhile, after a meeting with the IMA and other doctors’ associations, the union health ministry on Saturday announced its decision to form a committee which shall suggest measures to ensure the safety of healthcare professionals in the country.

IMA writes to PM Modi: Calling it a “movement for safety,” the IMA’s National President Dr R V Asokan spoke about the overwhelming response from doctors across the country in standing “united against the injustice”. As protests continued on Saturday, the medical body wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi listing out five “solutions and demands” — around hospital security, shift timings, ongoing probe of the Kolkata case and compensation to the family among others — it expects the government to meet.

What is the status of the probe? A CBI team is probing the case after it was transferred from the Kolkata Police by the Calcutta High Court on August 13. So far, it’s been found that the wife of Sanjay Roy, the man accused of raping and killing the doctor had lodged a complaint at Khalighat police station. On Saturday, the team continued interrogating former principal of the college Dr Sandip Ghosh, looking into whether there were attempts to “tamper with evidence” at the crime scene. With regard to the August 14 vandalism case, two TMC workers, several men in their teens or 20s, and a couple of women are among those identified of arrested so far. Several Left leaders, including Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI)’s West Bengal secretary Minakshi Mukherjee, and six other state level youth and student leaders of the CPIM have been summoned for questioning in the same case.