R.G. Kar mass resignations not legally acceptable: Bengal government

The mass resignations by senior doctors — including members of the medico-academic fraternity, from different state-run medical colleges and hospitals of West Bengal — are not legally acceptable, a senior state government figure said on Saturday, 12 October.

"Mass resignation is not a legally acceptable resignation for the state government. Unless given individually, a resignation letter is not a legally acceptable one," Alapan Bandopadhyay, chief advisor to West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, said at a press conference. "There had been such mass resignations in a scattered manner from different places. The state government intends to make the legal stand in the matter clear."

During the last few days, around 300 senior doctors and members of the medico-academic community from at least seven state-run medical colleges and hospitals have tendered mass resignations. Some senior doctors have also made it clear that these mass resignations are just initial token protests and, if the state government desires, they will submit individual resignations at a later stage.

Meanwhile, a senior officer of the state government said that there is a specific procedure for all state government officials and staff, including doctors, to resign from service.

"Each and every one needs to follow and go through that procedure and the resignation cannot be accepted overnight," he said.

The event of the state government making its stand clear on the mass resignation comes on a day when the fast-unto-death agitation by the junior doctors has entered the eighth day. While eight junior doctors are fasting at a dais at Esplanade in central Kolkata, two are doing the same within the campus of North Bengal Medical College & Hospital (NBMCH) at Siliguri in Darjeeling district.

The Indian Medical Association's (IMA) national president, R.V. Asokan, who came to West Bengal on Friday, 11 October, and met the doctors on a hunger strike, said that the protests by the junior doctors are not in self-interest but in the larger public interest.

However, at the same time, he requested the fasting doctors to withdraw their agitation, saying, "Life comes first."

Meanwhile, doctors at different private hospitals in West Bengal have also decided to join the protests.

A group of doctors attached to different private hospitals reached the dais of the fast-unto-death agitation by eight junior doctors on Saturday, 12 October, and announced that they would be commence partial cease-work for 48 hours from Monday.

"The partial cease-work will start from 6 a.m. on Monday (14 October) and continue to 6 a.m. on Wednesday (16 October). During this period, only the emergency medical services in these private hospitals will be made available," said a doctor attached to a leading private hospital in Kolkata.

Asked whether this move will create inconvenience for the patients coming to these hospitals for treatment, he said that precisely keeping the larger public interest in mind, they have decided to keep the emergency medical services in the state intact.

"This is not just a movement of doctors. This movement is in the larger public interest. The protesting junior doctors have received spontaneous public support. We want to assure the people, who always stood beside us, that in case of any emergency, they will not be denied treatment," the doctor contended.

The doctors attached to the private hospital alleged that they were supposed to make this announcement at a press conference at a hotel in Esplanade. "Although the hotel authorities agreed to rent out a hall for the press conference, they backed out at the time of paying the booking amount. We heard that the hotel authorities backed out because of the pressure from the police. Hence, we decided to make this announcement from the hunger strike venue," said a doctor.