Mamata Banerjee to agitating doctors outside home: 'I have been waiting. Please do not insult me like this'

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday met with the junior doctors protesting the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at a Kolkata hospital outside her home. She asked them to join talks to resolve the situation that had sparked nationwide protests.

The meeting between Mamata Banerjee and the protesting doctors, who are upset over the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, did not take place for the second time this week due to disagreements about recording the discussion.

Frustrated by the delay, Mamata Banerjee told the protesting doctors waiting outside her home in the rain, "Today, you said you wanted a meeting with me. I agreed and I have been waiting. Please do not insult me like this. Earlier, I waited for you for two hours, but you didn't come."

The Chief Minister told the doctors to come inside her house and have a cup of tea if they were not willing to meet her.

"All of us - the Chief Secretary, the Director General of Police (DGP) and the Home Secretary - are waiting for you all. We have given you umbrellas so that you don't get wet (in the rain). We have also made arrangements for you to sit inside. Please come inside and just have a tea at least if you don't want to talk with me," Mamata Banerjee said.

When the protesting doctors insisted on recording the meeting, the Chief Minister said this demand was not mentioned in the letter and noted that the matter is currently under legal review.

"Nowhere in the letter, it was mentioned that you wanted the meeting to be livestreamed. But I assure you that we will record everything and I will provide a copy to you. I will make sure that the video (of the meeting) won't be released till the Supreme Court allows it," she said.

She mentioned security concerns about allowing videography and the challenge of accommodating so many doctors in her home.

"Fifteen of you were supposed to come here but 40 of you have come here. Can 40 people be accommodated inside a person's house? I have made all the arrangements for you, though. I beg you all to come inside. If you don't want to hold a meeting, then at least have some tea," she said.

Earlier, Mamata Banerjee unexpectedly visited the doctors' protest at Swasthya Bhavan in Salt Lake and urged them to return to work soon. She promised to address their demands and called it her "last attempt" to resolve the crisis. She also assured that no action would be taken against the doctors, stating that "Bengal was not like Uttar Pradesh."

"I will not take any action against you. This is not Uttar Pradesh. They had implemented the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) and stopped all sorts of strikes and rallies. But rest assured, I will not do anything of that sort. I know that you do noble work," she had said.

The doctors welcomed Mamata Banerjee's surprise visit to their protest site and were invited by the Chief Minister to her residence for a meeting at 6 pm.

The doctors have been protesting outside Swasthya Bhavan since Tuesday, demanding better security at state-run hospitals and the removal of top officials following the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar hospital.

On Thursday, a planned meeting between the doctors and Mamata Banerjee was canceled because the state government refused to livestream it. The Chief Minister waited for two hours at the state secretariat, Nabanna, but the meeting did not take place even though the doctors arrived.

Mamata Banerjee then said she was "ready to give up her position for the sake of the people."