Thousands of enraged Indian protestors, including arch-rival football fans and lawyers, demanded justice Monday following the r*pe and death of a doctor, as national healthcare strikes entered their second week.
On August 9, the 31-year-old doctor’s bloodied body was discovered at a state-run hospital in the eastern city of Kolkata, sparking medical strikes and protests across India, channeling anger at the long-standing issue of violence against women.
On Monday, doctors’ groups from government-run hospitals in numerous cities throughout India maintained their protests, resulting in reduced non-essential services.
“We have forgotten our rivalries to make common cause in calling for justice for the doctor and her family,” said Bablu Mukherjee, a supporter of Kolkata’s Mohun Bagan soccer team.
“The cause is bigger than our club, even bigger than politics.”
The slain doctor was discovered in the teaching hospital’s seminar hall, indicating that she had gone there for a break during her 36-hour shift.
An autopsy indicated s*xual assault, and her parents filed a plea with the Kolkata High Court, claiming they feared their daughter was gang r*ped.
In a rare display of togetherness, fans from Kolkata’s traditional opponents, the East Bengal team, marched alongside them in a midnight rally that lasted till the early hours of Monday.
“We are with the doctors,” the fans chanted in unison, shrugging off torrential monsoon rains and police seeking to break up the rally. “We want justice.”
‘Call to humanity’
Many of the protests in multiple cities have been led by doctors and other healthcare workers but have also been joined by tens of thousands of ordinary Indians demanding action.
“It’s not just a protest, but a call to humanity,” said 23-year-old student Sristi Haldar, from Kolkata’s Presidency University, who joined the candlelit rally.
“We are angry,” she said. “It’s about the safety of all women everywhere”.
Doctors from the R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital, where the murder occurred, rallied outside the building on Monday.
“We are determined that we don’t give in to pressure to remain silent,” said Shreya Shaw, a woman doctor. “The protests will go on until we get justice.”
With non-essential medical procedures closed, some of the striking doctors in the capital New Delhi offered to see patients for free outside India’s health ministry.
‘No mercy’
India’s Supreme Court has also taken up the issue, overseeing proceedings in Kolkata’s High Court, with a hearing scheduled for Tuesday.
One man was held while working at the hospital, assisting patients in navigating long lines.
Hundreds of attorneys, largely women, marched in Kolkata’s protests wearing legal black gowns.
“No mercy for rapists,” one banner said.
Doctors have also urged that the Central Protection Act, a bill intended to safeguard healthcare professionals from violence, be implemented.
The brutal nature of the crime has drawn analogies to the horrible 2012 gang r*pe and murder of a young woman on a Delhi bus.
It has caused significant outrage in a country where s*xual abuse against women is rampant.
S*xual assault against women is a significant problem in India, with approximately 90 r*pes reported every day in 2022.
On Monday, Indian media reported that five persons had been arrested for allegedly raping a youngster at a bus station in northern Uttarakhand state.