Unrest continues in India after medic's rape and murder

A trainee doctor was raped and killed, sparking protests in several cities and an attack on a medical college campus, as doctors and paramedics in several cities across India demand better and safer working conditions.

The incident took place at a medical college in the eastern city of Kolkata where she worked.

Late on Thursday, the Indian Medical Association, the country's largest grouping of medics, said it would implement a nationwide shutdown of most departments, except essential services, for 24 hours from Saturday morning, the largest such strike in at least a decade.

Scores of people went on a rampage at a medical college campus in Kolkata attacking vehicles and ransacking patient wards on Wednesday night, police said Thursday.

Police did not identify who was behind the rampage, but media reports said several police officers were injured and police fired tear gas in the clash at the R.G. Kar Medical College in Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal state.

"Doctors, especially women are vulnerable to violence because of the nature of the profession. It is for the authorities to provide for the safety of doctors inside hospitals and campuses," the IMA said in a statement issued on X late on Thursday night.

Political parties, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which is in opposition in West Bengal, of which Kolkata is capital, said they will hold protests in the city on Friday.

Bollywood actors, other celebrities and politicians have voiced shock at the crime, calling for stricter punishments for perpetrators of crimes against women.

A police volunteer who worked at the hospital has been arrested and charged with the crime.

Doctors say the circumstances of the rape point to the vulnerability of medics left without proper protection and facilities.

The government brought in sweeping changes to the criminal justice system, including tougher sentences, after the Delhi gang-rape in 2013, but campaigners say little has changed despite the tougher laws.

Police in India recorded 31,516 reports of rape in 2022, a 20% increase from 2021, according to the National Crime Records Bureau.

Many cases of crimes against women go unreported in India due to stigma surrounding sexual violence, as well as a lack of faith in the police.

Women’s rights activists say the problem is particularly acute in rural areas, where the community sometimes shames victims of sexual assault and families worry about their social standing.

The rape law was amended in 2013, criminalising stalking and voyeurism and lowering the age at which a person can be tried as an adult from 18 to 16.

Despite stringent laws, rights activists say the government is still not doing enough to protect women and punish attackers.