Doctors in Karnataka hold protest seeking justice for Kolkata rape-murder victim
Bengaluru (PTI): Members of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) in Karnataka on Saturday joined the nationwide protest condemning the rape and murder of a female doctor in Kolkata.
Seeking justice for the 31-year-old trainee doctor who was allegedly raped and killed in a Kolkata hospital, a protest march is being taken out by the doctors in several parts of the southern state.
In Bengaluru, the agitation is taking place at the IMA office in Chamarajpet where over 1,000 doctors are participating.
The IMA Karnataka unit president Srinivasa S told PTI that its branches across Karnataka will remain shut and there will be no OPD services anywhere.
"All we want is justice for this young female doctor who was brutally raped and killed. What happened with her is totally unacceptable. We don't want any political involvement. Just like other professionals, doctors are also working in sensitive areas and so, we want a central law to safeguard doctors," he said.
Their other demands include - setting up safe zones and restrooms for doctors in hospitals who are working round the clock, there should be sufficient number of CCTV cameras installed inside every hopsital.
Pointing to instances of assault on doctors, he said police personnel should also be deployed in hospitals to ensure security.
"We are fighting for a genuine cause. In our country, women are worshipped. When we saves the lives of people, we are called Gods and this is how our doctors are treated. They are not safe at their workplace. We don't have safe zones, restrooms for doctors who work long hours. We are always told we are working for a social cause, for a noble cause and this is how our fraternity is treated," he lamented.
Demanding safety and security of doctors at workplace, he said the future of doctors should be safe and for that, both the central and state governments should work towards it effectively.
"No emergency services across any hospitals in Karnataka will be affected due to the strike," he added.
Meanwhile, the Karnataka government on Friday suspended the leaves of the medical officers and surgeons of government hospitals.
In a circular, the Health and Family Welfare Department said all the district health and family welfare officers and district surgeons along with the administrative officers of all the hospitals should ensure that emergency services are not affected, causing trouble for people.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
