VIDEO: 50 Senior Doctors of RG Kar Hospital Resign in Support of Junior Doctors on Hunger Strike

Kolkata: Around 50 senior doctors from RG Kar Medical College submitted their resignations on Tuesday in solidarity with the junior doctors' movement.

The resignations include department heads, marking a major step in the state's healthcare reform struggle. 

Reports suggested that doctors from other prominent medical institutions such as SSKM and NRS may follow suit, further intensifying the pressure on the state government. 

The junior doctors have been on fast-unto-death demanding justice for Abhaya in the gruesome rape and murder case. 

The decision to resign en masse was taken at a meeting of the heads of various departments of the state-run hospital on Tuesday morning, they said. 

“This has been decided at today’s meeting of the HoDs. All 50 senior doctors of our hospital have signed their resignation letters. This is to express our solidarity towards those young doctors who are fighting for a cause,” a senior doctor told PTI. 

Senior doctors at NRS Medical College and Hospital were also mulling to follow the footsteps of their colleagues in the RG Kar hospital, he said. 

The Joint Platform of Doctors, West Bengal pledged solidarity with the junior medics who have been demanding justice for the rape and murder of the woman doctor of RG Kar Hospital and an end to the "corruption-ridden" healthcare system. 

While junior doctors have been on fast-unto-death for the last four days voicing their demands, there has been "no response from the appropriate authority to solve the issues", a statement issued by the platform said. 

The doctor's platform also voiced concern over the health condition of those who are on the fast-unto-death and said they are fighting for a “campus democracy and patient-friendly system". 

"In this situation, we will stand in solidarity," the statement added. (with PTI inputs)