13.4.2026
The Joint Platform of Doctors (JPD), West Bengal, expresses its profound shock and unequivocal condemnation regarding a recent social media post by a senior registered medical practitioner (Cardiologist) based in Kolkata. The practitioner, associated with a reputed corporate healthcare institution, has reportedly offered professional fee rebates and discounts contingent upon the utterance of specific religious slogans.
Violation of the Sacred Oath
This Platform views such actions not merely as a lapse in judgment, but as a direct assault on the accepted fabric of the medical profession.
Legal & Ethical Breach
As per the Indian Medical Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette, and Ethics) Regulations, 2002, duly adopted by the National Medical Commission (NMC) in 2023, a Registered Medical Practitioner (RMP) is strictly prohibited from discriminating against patients based on religion, caste, race, or political affiliation.
The Principle of Universal Care
While we encourage and celebrate doctors who provide gratuitous services or financial concessions to the underprivileged, such altruism must be guided by socio-economic need, not by religious slogans or sectarian identity.
Consistency in Our Stand
The JPD reminds the public and the fraternity that our stance against discrimination is unwavering. A few years ago, when a prominent political personality in West Bengal disparagingly alleged that doctors treat patients based on their “titles” (surnames), this Platform was the first to vehemently oppose such baseless communal labeling of our community.
To see a member of our own fraternity now validate such divisive logic through “slogan- based discounts” is a matter of extreme regret and professional shame.
OUR APPEAL
To the Medical Fraternity
We appeal to every colleague to reject and discourage such unethical behavior. Our consultation chambers must remain sanctuaries of healing, free from the polarising shadows of bigotry.
To the Political Leaders
We urge leaders across the spectrum to refrain from making derogatory comments that communalize the noble profession of medicine.
To the Regulatory Bodies
We draw the attention of the West Bengal Medical Council and the NMC to such instances of “professional misconduct” that tarnish the image of the entire community.
Final Declaration
The Joint Platform of Doctors stands firm:
Disease has no religion; treatment should have no bias. If such unethical practices recur, this Platform will not hesitate to raise a louder, more sustained protest to safeguard the sanctity of the Hippocratic Oath.
