The chief justice of India has urged doctors to return to work after the rape and murder of a trainee female medic sparked strike action and protests across the country.
Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud made the comments in the Supreme Court days after it took “suo moto cognisance” of the case – meaning the court has initiated legal proceedings on its own accord without a formal petition being filed.
India’s Central Bureau of Investigation, West Bengal police and the Kolkata High Court have all been working on the case, but the Supreme Court decided the case was so important that it had to step in.
The rape and killing of the 31-year-old trainee doctor at Kolkata city’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on 9 August has angered health professionals across India.
Doctors argue that the murder highlights the vulnerability of healthcare workers in hospitals and medical campuses across the country.
The killing has also focused rage on the chronic issue of violence against women in India.
A 31-year-old civil volunteer has been arrested and charged but the family of the victim allege it was a gang rape and more people were involved.
Thousands of doctors have protested and gone on strike in the days after the murder – with the walkouts having affected patients across the country.
The doctors are demanding more stringent laws to protect them from violence, including making any attack on on-duty medics an offence without the possibility of bail.
Mr Chandrachud has said the “brutality” of the rape and killing of the trainee doctor has “shocked the nation’s conscious”.
He added: “There is a lack of institutional safety for doctors and the nation cannot await a rape or murder for real changes on the ground”.
Mr Chandrachud has also urged doctors to end strike action, with the court telling them they will not face any punishment for protests or walkouts they have taken part in up until now if they return to work.
In an unusual move indicating the magnitude of the case, the Supreme Court has been scrutinising details and timelines in police diary entries and autopsy reports in relation to the killing.
The court has directed criticism at the West Bengal government and the state’s police force in relation to its handling of the case.
The case was later transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation on 13 August.
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It came before the court set up a nine-member national taskforce of eminent doctors and health professionals who will make recommendations on the safety of healthcare workers in the wake of the killing.
As part of this, it is putting together a countrywide action plan for the safety and security of doctors and medical professionals, as well as providing a protocol for dignified and safe working conditions and establishing safety rules in hospitals.
Manish Jangra, founder of the Federation of All India Medical Associations (FAIMA), told Sky News: “We welcome the order but are unhappy with the composition of the task force as most are from private corporate hospitals.
“It’s doctors from government hospitals that face violence. Our demand is that resident doctors or professors from government hospitals should be included as they are they are the stake holders.”
‘This could have happened to me’
Dr Prerana Modani, a paediatrician who joined colleagues at a protest outside the ministry of health in Delhi, told Sky News: “We are sitting here to provide out-patient services to the public as we don’t feel safe in our workplace anymore.
“We expected our rights would be assured to us earlier. Our basic demand is of safety and until that is not given we are not going to stop. This could have happened to me.”
Dr Akhila, an oncologist, said: “We want a Central Protection Act to be brought in to safeguard our security and safety.”
Dr Manyata, an anaesthetist, adds: “Legislations are there but its implementation is very poor. There is no security for us, anyone can walk into the hospitals at any point of time.”
The body of the trainee doctor who was killed was found in the early hours of the morning on the third floor of a seminar room.
The case has echoes of the murder of a physiotherapy student in Delhi in 2012 – a killing which also sparked protests across India.
New laws were enacted, older ones strengthened, punishments made more severe, and fast-track courts established to try cases of crimes against women. But there seems to be little change on the ground.
The latest figures from the National Crime Records Bureau show the number of rape cases in the country has increased.
In 2022, police recorded 31,516 reports of rape, an increase of 20% on the previous year. That is about 86 reported rapes a day nationwide. Conviction rates are also low.