Joint Platform of Doctors analysis of Abhishek Banerjee’s Doctors’ Convention (30th November 2024)
Abhishek Banerjee’s Doctors’ Convention at Diamond Harbour on November 30, 2024, can only be seen as a carefully orchestrated distraction from the pressing issues that plague West Bengal’s healthcare system. While the event was styled as an outreach to medical professionals, its timing and tone betray its true purpose: to divert public attention from the rampant corruption, nepotism, and partisanship entrenched in the state’s health administration and ancillary bodies, including the West Bengal University of Health Sciences (WBUHS), the West Bengal Medical Council (WBMC), and the West Bengal Health Recruitment Board (WBHRB).
A Diversionary Tactic Amid a Healthcare Crisis
This convention comes at a time when the healthcare sector is reeling from systemic failures and administrative chaos. Violence against healthcare workers is on the rise, democratic institutions are being dismantled, and recruitment and transfer policies are mired in irregularities. Abhishek Banerjee’s attempt to engage with the medical community ignores these fundamental issues and instead tries to create an illusion of reform and inclusivity. However, without addressing the root causes, such initiatives remain hollow.
Justice for Abhaya: The Unanswered Questions
The brutal rape and murder of the post graduate trainee at RG Kar Medical College on August 9, 2024, is perhaps the darkest blot on the state’s healthcare sector and the unprecedented hooliganism that ensued on the pre Independence Day night at R. G. Kar and all arrested hooligans now roaming scotfree. Despite public outrage and protests from the medical fraternity, the state administration has not only failed to ensure swift justice but to the best of our knowledge have been systematically engaged in tampering with key evidences including willful destruction of civil infrastructure around the alleged crime scene. Key individuals within the health department, who are believed to have been complicit in covering up or enabling this heinous crime, remain untouched. Instead of addressing these demands for justice, the convention appears to shield those involved and perpetuate a culture of impunity.
Corruption and Partisan Control
The convention also overlooks the pervasive corruption in statutory bodies. The WBMC, tainted by electoral malpractices in 2013, 2018, and 2022, continues to function as a political tool rather than a regulatory body. The WBHRB and WBUHS have similarly lost their credibility due to nepotistic practices that prioritize political loyalty over merit and ethics. By not addressing these issues, the event only reinforces the suspicion that it was a platform for optics, not substance.
Focus on Core Issues
The focus should remain firmly on:
1. Justice for Abhaya: Ensuring all those directly or indirectly involved in her murder are prosecuted.
2. Eradicating Corruption: Dissolving compromised bodies like WBMC and implementing transparent policies in the Dept. of Health and FW.
3. Ending Violence in Healthcare: Developing a robust mechanism to protect healthcare professionals.
4. Reforming the Health Administration: Addressing incompetence and partisanship at every level, starting from Swasthyabhavan.
5. Restoring Democratic Institutions: Ensuring free and fair functioning of medical councils and health recruitment boards.
Conclusion
The Diamond Harbour convention is a classic example of style over substance. While it might garner applause from party loyalists, it does little to address the existential crisis in West Bengal’s healthcare system. The state’s doctors and citizens must remain vigilant, ensuring that such distractions do not derail the fight for accountability, justice, and systemic reform.
The demand is clear: no more diversions, no more excuses. The people of West Bengal deserve a healthcare system free from violence, corruption, and partisanship—and justice for Abhaya must be the first step in this transformation.
