A division bench of Calcutta High Court, headed by Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty, on Thursday upheld an order passed by a single bench that set aside the health department’s decision to send RG Kar doctor Aniket Mahata to a Raiganj hospital.
Single bench judge Justice Biswajit Basu wrote in his order on September 24 that the health department “is directed to deploy and/or engage the petitioner in the second vacancy of SR (senior resident) in the discipline of anaesthesiology at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital with immediate effect”.
The state had moved an appeal against the order of the single bench.
Mahata was one of the leaders of the doctors’ protests after the rape and death of a postgraduate trainee at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9, 2024.
He filed a petition on June 9, challenging the department’s decision to post him at Raiganj Government Medical College and Hospital.
During his counselling, Mahata had selected RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.
The health department had challenged the order passed by Justice Basu before the division bench headed by Justice Tapabrata Chakraborty and claimed that it was the discretion of the department to send a doctor to a state-run hospital.
“It does not depend on the choice of doctors,” advocate-general Kishore Datta had argued before the division bench.
The division bench delivered its judgment on Thursday.
“It has been almost six months since I have been out of my profession, which makes me sad. There was no logic in the state’s argument, and that has been proven by the court orders,” Mahata told Metro on Thursday evening.
The other candidate not assigned to the hospital of his choice is Asfakulla Naiya, another face of the doctors’ movement.
ENT specialist Naiya chose Prafulla Chandra Sen Government Medical College in Arambagh. But he was sent to Deben Mahato Government Medical College and Hospital in Purulia.
Debasish Halder, a second-year senior resident and another leader of the protests, has also challenged the health department’s decision to post him at Gazole Rural Hospital. His choice was the Howrah District Hospital.
Naiya and Halder have joined the respective hospitals that have been assigned to them. Their cases are awaiting disposal.