HC quashes transfer order of junior doctor involved in RG Kar Protests

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Thursday upheld a single bench order that had rejected the West Bengal government's directive to transfer a junior doctor to Raiganj Medical College and Hospital in North Dinajpur district. The doctor had emerged as one of the prominent faces of the agitation following the rape and murder of a woman doctor at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in August last year.

As a result, the transfer order of Dr Aniket Mahato, appointing him as “senior resident” at Raiganj Medical College and Hospital in North Dinajpur district, has been quashed.

The division bench verdict effectively means that, as per the earlier single bench order, Mahato’s posting will be at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital -- his first-choice posting, as indicated during the counselling session for senior resident appointments.

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Reacting to Thursday’s judgment, Aniket said, “This is definitely a victory for justice and transparency. Seven months have already passed since the posting controversy. I have been away from my chosen profession for so long. I hope that this time at least I will be given a posting as per the court order and will be able to start working as a doctor soon, reports IANS.

This entire incident is nothing but political vendetta. I hope that in the future, the recruitment process will be transparent and in accordance with the rules.”

Mahato was not the only doctor denied his preferred posting after the counselling process earlier this year. Two other junior doctors -- Debasish Halder and Asfaqulla Naiya -- who were also part of the R.G. Kar protest movement, were similarly denied their first-choice postings.

In September, a single bench of Justice Biswajit Basu had ruled that Aniket should be posted in the anaesthesia department of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. The court had observed that the standard operating procedure (SOP) followed in such cases was not adhered to in his instance, thereby violating Article 14 of the Constitution — the equality clause.

The state government, dissatisfied with the verdict, had sought a stay on the order until October 7. However, Justice Basu dismissed the plea. Subsequently, the state approached a division bench, challenging the single bench order.

On Thursday, the division bench comprising Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty upheld the single bench’s decision and dismissed the state government’s appeal, effectively reaffirming that the transfer order was arbitrary and violated procedural fairness.

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