RG Kar mishap: Prominent protest figure, Mahata quits West Bengal Junior Doctors Front
Telegraph | 2 January 2026
Aniket Mahata, a prominent figure in the junior doctors’ protests of 2024 following the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, has stepped down from the junior doctors’ organisation that was established during the height of the protests.
In a letter to the board of trustees of West Bengal Junior Doctors Front on Wednesday, Aniket announced his decision to step down as president of the trust.
A representative from the front stated that a trust led by several prominent figures of the junior doctors’ movement has overseen the front since its establishment. Recently, a group of junior doctors, including some who serve on the trustee board, decided to establish a separate executive committee.
The front was established because there was no unified group of junior doctors from every medical college in the state involved in the protests that occurred in 2024, following the rape and murder at RG Kar hospital.
“Aniket was opposed to the idea of forming the executive committee without taking any legal opinion. He was unsure of the roles of a board of trustees and the executive committee,” said the doctor.
In the letter, Aniket writes that despite expressing his reservations, the other members did not heed his opinion.
“There was a lack of clarity regarding the responsibilities of the executive committee and the board of trustees. The front’s constitution did not provide any information about the formation of an executive committee. As a result, I advised seeking legal advice before establishing any committee, which was overlooked. The way in which the committee has been set is undemocratic and illegal,” Aniket told Metro on Thursday.
He called the way the committee was being set up “undemocratic” and not in sync with the demands for justice that rose following the crime at RG Kar hospital.
A JDF member said that elections to the executive committee were recently held.
Aniket is one of three physicians who filed a lawsuit against the state for failing to assign them to their preferred hospital during the senior residents’ counselling process.
While the other doctors accepted the positions assigned by the state, Aniket chose to decline the position offered.
He battled the state’s decision in court. Despite being asked to post Aniket at the college of his choice, the health department has still not offered him a post at RG Kar.