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One more person has been arrested in connection with the case of threats and assault on a female doctor at Uluberia Medical College and Hospital in Howrah, taking the total number of arrests to three. The incident sparked widespread protests by medical unions and political parties over the safety of women and doctors in West Bengal.
“One person was arrested on Wednesday (October 22, 2025) in the morning hours. The total number of arrests now stands at three. We are analyzing all the CCTV footage and if we find more culprits, we will spare no one,” Jadhav Shubham Pandurang, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (Uluberia), said on Wednesday, October 22, 2025.
According to police officials, two persons were arrested on Monday (October 20, 2025) for assaulting a junior female doctor at Uluberia Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay Government Medical College and Hospital. The arrest followed a police complaint lodged by the doctor on Monday (October 20, 2025) evening. The accused, said to be family members of the patient, had allegedly manhandled and abused her earlier in the afternoon.
The West Bengal Police acted swiftly to make the arrests; however, the incident reignited the debate over repeated attacks on women and medical personnel in the state.
The three arrested men were identified as Sheikh Samrat, Sheikh Babulal, a home guard in the traffic police department, and Sheikh Hasibul. It is also alleged that Sheikh Babulal had close ties with the Trinamool Congress.
Taking cognizance of the incident, West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose said in a statement, “Violence against doctors is neither civilized behavior nor desirable. HG calls on everyone to be aware of the excellent role doctors play in providing treatment and care to those in need.”
Subir Majumdar, acting medical superintendent-cum-deputy director of Uluberia Hospital, said the institution has more than 68 security guards on campus. “When there is a sudden mob attack, it is very difficult to control the situation,” said Dr. Majumdar.
The protests continue
Representatives of the Joint Forum of Doctors and Service Doctors visited Uluberia Hospital and expressed concern about the safety of doctors in government health facilities.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers staged protests in Uluberia where they clashed with police personnel on the ground.
Reacting to reports that one of the accused is the Home Guard police, BJP leaders have strongly criticized the ruling party. “Now they are all in Trinamool, all the miscreants have gone and raised Trinamool flag to stay safe. They know they have blessings from them Trinamool cannot be held responsible,” State BJP president and Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya said.
Opposition leaders also drew parallels with the RG Kar Medical College rape and murder. CPI(M) state secretary Mohammad Salim said such incidents have become “regular” in West Bengal and accused the ruling party of harboring the perpetrators. “Mamata asking women not to go out at night is her endorsement of the failure of the state’s law and order system,” he said.
Trinamool state vice-president Jay Prakash Majumdar called the attack a “social evil” and said, “Rape and assault on women is a cancer of society and a national problem across countries. It is unfortunate that the BJP is politicizing it even though the police acted quickly and arrested the accused within hours of the complaint being filed.”
Published – 22 Oct 2025 22:31 IST
