Bengal Doctors' Body Calls for Dissolution of State Medical Council over Alleged Irregularities

Kolkata: In a recent development, the Joint Platform of Doctors (JPD), an association representing senior doctors in West Bengal, has urged the state government to dissolve the state's medical council, citing ongoing "irregularities" within its operations.

Joint Platform of Doctors (JPD) has sought the intervention of the West Bengal government to end the continuing "irregularities" in the functioning of the West Bengal Medical Council. 

The association's joint conveners Punyabrata Gun and Hiralal Konar have sent a communique to Chief Secretary Manoj Pant seeking discussions on this issue.

According to an IANS report, in the communique, the association expressed apprehension that in view of the "unethical" and "inhumane" transfer of release orders of doctors which are in contravention to the provision of law as prescribed by the National Medical Council, suspicions are surfacing about the resurrection of the alleged "threat culture" in the state's healthcare sector.

The JPD has also questioned the state Health Department's "silence" on the disciplinary actions against doctors accused of "threat culture" although several high-powered inquiry committees have found the majority of allegations against such errant doctors to be valid.

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According to JPD, the "silence" of the Health Department is leading to the "breach" of mutual trust in contravention of the promise made by higher administration for early recovery of the same for the larger interest of the majority of stakeholders.

The communique from the senior doctors' body to the state secretary comes at a time when infighting within Trinamool Congress has become blatant over the spat between the party's two doctor-leaders within the state Medical Council, news agency IANS reported.

Trinamool Congress legislator and the president of the state Medical Council, on Wednesday, sent a communique to State Health and Family Welfare Secretary Narayan Swarup Nigam seeking immediate replacement of the former Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha member Santanu Sen as the state government-nominated member of the council.

As per a media report in the HT, the doctors’ body raised the demand a day after the council president asked health secretary NS Nigam to seek the removal of Dr Santanu Sen, one of the three state-nominated members of the medical council since he had missed several recent meetings. Sen, a former Rajya Sabha member of the ruling party, was the most vocal among ruling party leaders after the crime. He had demanded inquiry against some senior doctors following which TMC removed him from the post of party spokesperson.

A cold war between Roy and Sen, both medical practitioners in private life, broke out after the rape and murder of a female junior doctor of R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata in August.

Sen became vocal against a section of the state healthcare system. Things worsened further over the central agency probe into the financial irregularities at R. G. Kar, as part of which the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials conducted raid and search operations at residence and hospital of Roy in Kolkata and also questioned him at the central agency office.

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