Interns at Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) have decided to abstain from work for an indefinite period in protest against the failure of the police to arrest those who attacked one of their peers on Monday. The work absention was called by DMCH Intern Doctors’ Council on Thursday. Earlier, the Council had given a 48-hour ultimatum to identify the attackers and take legal steps against them, which didn’t bear any fruit. “48 hours have passed but the DU students who had attacked Dr Md Sazzad Hossain at the Central Shahid Minar on Monday night are yet to be identified and punished. Protesting this, the intern doctors of DMCH will abstain from work until further notice,” the release read. On Monday night, some students of Dhaka University thrashed Dr Sazzad Hossen on Central Shahid Minar premises "without any valid reason". Read: Attack on DMCH intern: Fellows stage protest, threaten strike "Around 9:00pm on August 8, I sat on the premises of central Shahid Minar. Suddenly, some students of the University of Dhaka (wearing T-shirts with the logo of Dhaka University) appeared and started asking me about my identity and institution," Dr Sazzad wrote on his Facebook page. "When I told them that I am a student of Dhaka Medical College, they wanted to check my ID card. As I failed to show my ID card at that moment, they started beating me and hurled abusive words at me.”   Later, the victim filed a complaint against some unidentified people at the Shahbagh Police Station in this connection. An FIR was subsequently filed on the basis of the complaint.

Students of Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College and Hospital who embarked on a strike on Monday night in protest against the attack on two medical interns by relatives of a patient, suspended their movement early on Tuesday morning. "We have suspended our strike after getting assurances from the authorities that steps will be taken against the accused," said Amit Hasan Sunny, a fifth-year student of the medical college. “But the suspension is till 2 pm as the authorities have already arrested two people in connection with the attack. The hospital authorities have assured us that they will file a case in this regard and that others involved will also be held,” he said. Also read: Osmani Medical College students block road protesting attack by patient’s relatives If the authorities fails to fulfill the demands of the medical interns, the strike will resume from 2pm, said Sunny. Ajbahar Ali Sheikh, deputy commissioner of Sylhet Metropolitan Police, said, “We have already arrested two people and identified the others involved and they will be arrested soon. Additional police force has been deployed at the medical college to ensure the safety of the students.” The arrestees are Muhid Hasan Rabbi, general secretary of Sylhet ward-3 of Bangladesh Chhatra League, and his associate Ehsan Ahmed. Injured interns -- Rudra Nath and Naimur Rahman Imon -- are currently being treated at the hospital. On Sunday, two relatives of a patient misbehaved with a female medical intern at the hospital. They were later handed over to the police. To take revenge, relatives of the patient entered the college campus and stabbed two intern doctors on Monday night. Also read: Students demand establishment of medical college in Panchagarh On Monday, at 10 pm, all intern doctors of the hospital suspended their services and announced to go on strike until all the attackers were arrested. They closed all the hospital gates and took position on the main road in front of it creating a blockade.

The intern doctors of Satkhira Medical College Hospital have called an indefinite strike demanding a full-fledged hospital including emergency department on Wednesday morning.