Former Trinamool Congress MP and Bengali actor Mimi Chakraborty revealed that she has received rape threats online after expressing support for protesting doctors in Kolkata. Sharing screenshots on the social media platform X, Chakraborty highlighted the numerous threatening comments she has received recently. She wrote, “AND WE ARE DEMANDING JUSTICE FOR WOMEN RIGHT???? These are just a few of them. Where rape threats have been normalized by venomous men hiding in the crowd, claiming to support women. What kind of upbringing and education permits this????” She tagged the cybercrime division of the Kolkata police in her post.
Junior doctors across the country have been protesting, demanding justice for the postgraduate trainee doctor who was brutally raped and murdered by civic volunteer Sanjoy Roy at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. The protests have disrupted outpatient services and surgeries nationwide, though emergency services remain operational.
Despite the Supreme Court forming a task force to recommend safety measures for medical professionals, the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) welcomed the move but stated that any decision to end the strike would only be made after discussions with the protesting doctors. FORDA reported that resident doctors’ associations held a meeting following the Supreme Court’s intervention, but discussions on the next steps remained inconclusive.
In a related incident, police arrested a man from West Bengal’s Purba Bardhaman district for allegedly threatening a woman doctor with the same fate as the victim in Kolkata. The man reportedly threatened the doctor for being late to start his treatment, saying, “Did you see what happened at RG Kar Medical College Hospital? It can happen to you too.”
Meanwhile, in Parliament, Lok Sabha MP and former Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi submitted a notice to bring a privilege motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This was in response to Modi sharing a speech by BJP MP Anurag Thakur on social media platform X, even though parts of it had been expunged. A lawmaker’s speech in the House is protected from legal challenge, and they have the right to respond if their name is mentioned by another lawmaker. If a member or minister makes an unsubstantiated comment or if someone tarnishes the reputation of an MP or hinders their work, the affected Parliamentarian or MLA can file a complaint to the Speaker or Chairman, claiming a breach of privileges.