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Members of the West Bengal Junior Doctors Front (WBJDF) are set to meet with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and other officials at the CM's residence today (Monday).
This follows an agreement reached by the Chief Secretary (CS) regarding the junior doctors' request for a meeting with the Chief Minister. The WBJDF received an invitation to discuss their "five-point demands" during today's meeting. In a series of emails, the Chief Secretary extended a final invitation to the junior doctors for the meeting. Previous attempts had failed due to disagreements over transparency concerns. The WBJDF, while agreeing to attend the meeting, requested a change of venue to an official setting, citing governance-related concerns. "As law-abiding citizens, we are more than willing to join today's meeting. However, it would be preferable if the meeting were held in an official or administrative venue, given the governance-related nature of the issues," the WBJDF stated. They further noted that the need for transparency had increased following the arrests of Sandip Ghosh, former principal of RG Kar Medical College, and Abhijit Mondol, Officer-in-Charge of Tala Police Station, in connection with a rape and murder case. "We would like to reiterate that two significant developments occurred after the last proposed meeting: 1. The arrest of Sandip Ghosh in the case related to the rape and murder of ABHAYA. 2. The arrest of the Tala PS OC in connection with the same case. These developments heighten the importance of ensuring transparency in the meeting," the WBJDF's message read. The WBJDF suggested three measures to ensure transparency: videography by separate videographers for both parties, a full video file of the meeting to be handed over immediately, or minutes with a complete transcript to be recorded and signed by all attendees. In response, the Chief Secretary confirmed that minutes of the meeting would be signed by both parties and copies shared to ensure clarity and agreement on the discussions. "...the representatives of both parties will sign the minutes at the end of the meeting, and copies will be shared with each party to ensure clarity and agreement," the CS replied. Following this exchange, the junior doctors proceeded to the Chief Minister's residence, accompanied by two stenographers to assist in the meeting. Earlier, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had invited a delegation of junior doctors to her residence at 5 pm today for the discussion. In a letter to the junior doctors, it was stated, "This is the fifth and final time we are reaching out to you for a meeting between the Honourable Chief Minister and your delegates. In line with our discussion from the day before, we once again invite you to a meeting with the Honourable Chief Minister at her Kalighat residence for an open-minded discussion." (ANI)
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