Kolkata, Sep 27 (IANS): Senior doctors participating in a mass convention organised by the West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Forum on Friday, called for a bigger platform involving people from all walks of life to clean up the health system in the state.

The mass convention comes amid the protests over the rape and murder of a junior doctor of R.G. Kar Medical College & Hospital last month.

While emphasising on the need to carry on the movement, veteran medical practitioner Dr Arnab Goswami said that there is a need for a bigger and joint platform for that purpose, involving not just representatives from the medical fraternity but people from different walks of life.

“The joint platform is necessary to prolong the movement,” he said.

Describing junior doctors as the pillar of the medical system, the Director of the state-run S.S.K.M. Medical College & Hospital Manimoy Bandyopadhyay said that the macabre tragedy at R.G Kar was unimaginable.

“All those who are directly and indirectly involved in it should be identified and punished,” he said.

Medical teacher, writer and documentary film- maker Tirthankar Guha Thakurta said the recent ‘threat culture’ in medical colleges is a matter of concern.

“We were brought up being rebuked by our teachers. That was a different thing. But the trend of passing people in examinations against money is simply unacceptable. At the same time both male and female students should be protected from being victims of sexual exploitation,” he said.

Also invited as a speaker at the mass convention was the noted film director Kaushik Ganguly.

According to him, when the junior doctors have to come out on the streets in support of their demands, it is clear that nothing is right in the system.

“I want to assure the protesting junior doctors that this is not just their movement. People like former R.G. Kar principal Sandip Ghosh are there everywhere. It is time to wipe them out of the system completely. I will ask the junior doctors to have patience and continue their movement,” he said.