Kolkata Rape-Murder: Mamata Banerjee Suspends Transfer Of 42 Doctors Amid Protests

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has suspended the transfer orders of 42 doctors issued by the state's health department. This decision comes after West Bengal government earlier move to transfer working in various medical colleges and hospitals across the state amid protests over the rape and murder of a 31-year-old postgraduate trainee doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

Among the 42 transferred doctors were Dr. Sangeeta Paul and Dr. Supriya Das, both previously stationed at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, where the trainee doctor's semi-naked body was discovered on August 9.

Reacting to the state government's actions, Amit Malviya, head of the BJP IT Cell, accused Mamata Banerjee of targeting Medical College Kolkata and Calcutta National Medical College, which he claimed are the centers of protests against her "fascist regime."

"On August 16th, the West Bengal Government's Health Ministry issued an 8-page list of transfer orders, further aggravating the chaotic situation. Mamata Banerjee is targeting Medical College Kolkata and Calcutta National Medical College, which are the epicenters of protests against her fascist regime," Malviya wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

"So far, five professors from these two prestigious institutes have been transferred to colleges in Siliguri, Tamluk, Jhargram, and other locations. This is a desperate attempt to intimidate the senior doctor community into submission. What is Mamata Banerjee trying to hide?" he questioned.

The reshuffle has also drawn strong reactions from doctors' associations, who have condemned it as a conspiracy and an attempt to silence senior healthcare professionals.

In a jab at the Trinamool Congress (TMC), BJP's national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla remarked that the party stands for "Tanashahi Mujhe Chahiye" (I want dictatorship).

"Instead of cracking down on the gang rapists at Bengal's RG Kar Hospital, the Mamata government is busy cracking down on those crusading for justice. Mamata Banerjee is acting like a dictator that Indira Gandhi, Kim Jong Un, or Stalin would be proud of! Forty-three doctors who raised their voices have been transferred by a Talibani fatwa. Kolkata police are sending notices to citizens and journalists who are raising their voices and threatening them to take down social media posts. Five thousand goons were sent to disrupt a peaceful march, ransack the crime scene, and destroy evidence at RG Kar Hospital," Poonawalla wrote in a post on X.