The Bengal unit of the Congress, hitherto unconditionally in favour of the junior doctors, on Tuesday altered its stand to urge them to continue with their movement without hampering the public healthcare system, particularly during Durga Puja and the festive spell around it.

This brought the party on the same page with the ruling Trinamool Congress and the state’s principal Opposition, the BJP.

The Congress appeal came after the junior doctors’ announcement to go on
another cease-work, this time with a set of 10 demands, a day after the Supreme
Court hearing.

“The list of demands of the junior doctors is becoming longer. Earlier they had made five demands and now they have 10. We don’t want to make any comment on their demands but they should also realise that the public healthcare system will collapse if they continue with the cease-work,” said Congress’s chief spokesperson for Bengal Soumya Aich Roy.

“Let them do their work and continue with the movement. Both can go on simultaneously,” he added.

The new state unit chief of the Congress, Subhankar Sarkar, was met with go-back slogans from the protesting junior doctors when he along with several party leaders had visited the College of Medicine and Sagore Dutta Hospital, where there were protests against the alleged assault of medical staff following a patient’s death.

Although Sarkar had said that he went to express solidarity, the doctors said that their protest, aimed at ensuring safety and security in the workplace, was
unflinchingly “apolitical,” and they would not allow any political colour added to
their movement.

The Congress’s new line is virtually identical now to that of the BJP and the Trinamool.

“We have full support for the movement of the junior doctors. They are fighting for the right cause but at the same time they should understand the importance of their profession. They should not deny poor patients. They should find a way so that they can make a balance between their movement and their duty,” said BJP’s chief spokesperson for Bengal Samik Bhattacharya.

The CPM, however, maintained that the junior doctors were fighting for the right cause and the ruling dispensation was trying to malign them.

“Junior doctors are present only in medical colleges. There are no junior doctors in other government hospitals. So how can their cease-work affect the overall public healthcare system?” said CPM state secretary Md. Salim.

Trinamool sternly criticised the junior doctors’ decision to resume their
cease-work.

“Everybody wants punishment for those responsible for the rape and murder at RG Kar. There are some slogans coming from the rallies that have no connection with the RG Kar tragedy. Why is this happening? Who is responsible for this? There are some people behind it and we need to find them out,” said Trinamool’s Kunal Ghosh.