• Rape, murder of young doctor sparks widespread protests in India.
• Horrifying incident shows doctors’ vulnerability, Indian medics say.
  
• Doctors demands medical departments’ shutdown for 24hrs.

The horrific rape and murder of a young doctor in eastern India continues to evoke strong emotions as medical professionals are calling for a nationwide shutdown of hospital services and political parties are preparing for protests.

Last week, the 31-year-old doctor was tragically assaulted and killed while working at a medical college in Kolkata.

The horrifying incident sparked widespread outrage and nationwide demonstrations within the medical community, drawing comparisons to the infamous 2012 gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student in New Delhi.

According to Reuters, the Indian Medical Association (IMA), the largest organisation representing doctors in the country, announced Thursday a nationwide shutdown of most medical departments for 24 hours, with the exception of essential services, from Saturday morning.

This marks the largest such strike in at least a decade.

“Doctors, especially women are vulnerable to violence because of the nature of the profession. It is for the authorities to provide for the safety of doctors inside hospitals and campuses,” the IMA said in a statement issued on X late on Thursday night.

Political parties, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which is in opposition in West Bengal, said they will hold protests in the city on Friday.

Bollywood actors, other celebrities and politicians have voiced shock at the crime, calling for stricter punishments for perpetrators of crimes against women.

A police volunteer who worked at the hospital has been arrested and charged with the crime.

Lack of protection, facilities

Doctors say the circumstances of the rape point to the vulnerability of medics left without proper protection and facilities.

The government brought in sweeping changes to the criminal justice system, including tougher sentences, after the Delhi gang-rape, but campaigners say little has changed despite the tougher laws.

The victim, whose killing has triggered protests across India, had ordered some food with others nearly 20 hours into a 36-hour working day last Friday and then headed off for a short sleep, staff at the R G Kar Medical College told Reuters.

“She retired to the empty seminar room which was used by on-duty doctors to rest,” one co-worker said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

As news of her murder spread and protests erupted across the country earlier this week, IMA’s letter to Health Minister J P Nadda was released, in which the organisation wrote: “Pedestrian working conditions, inhuman workloads and violence in the workplace are the reality.”

“The attention of the authorities was drawn time and again to the lack of facilities, but there was no improvement,” a junior doctor at the hospital said, asking not to be named.