One news item which is at the forefront of the media nowadays is the Kolkata Rape-Murder Case . The unfortunate death of a postgraduate trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College & Hospital, who was brutally raped and murdered, has sent shock waves across the country.
Doctors, student organisations and politicians nationwide have come out on the streets demanding justice for the doctor. People from all walks of life have been voicing out their strong views requesting the concerned authorities to look into the safety of doctors in the country. The medical fraternity and the public have been demanding answers from the government in the light of unfortunate incident. The Indian Medical Association (IMA) launched a nationwide strike which has hit the medical services badly.
Surprisingly the leaders of INDI alliance, where Mamata Banerjee’s (CM of West Bengal) TMC party is member has kept their silent on this issue. The biggest party in this alliance Congress has also kept silence on this matter. Their Leader of Opposition (LOP) in Parliament, Rahul Gandhi, did not issue a single statement in this matter.
Here’s a timeline of this event:
1 9th August 2024– 31 year old PG trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College Hospital was raped and murdered. She was found dead with injuries on her face inside the seminar hall of the hospital.
2 10th August 2024– Police arrest accused Sanjay Roy in connection with the rape and murder of the doctor. Autopsy report confirms murder following sexual assault. IMA and protesting doctors’ demand immediate action.
Who is Sanjay Roy?
He is a civic volunteer attached to RG Kar Hospital. Let us take aa look at the events that led to this tragedy
- 5th -8th August– Sanjay Roy travelled to Salua in Kharagpur to attend a Police Welfare Society meeting. He stayed from 5th August to 8th August, claiming he was on duty as civic assistant.
- 8th August morning– Upon returning to Kolkata, Sanjay Roy visited RG Kar Hospital to facilitate the admission of a patient. After ensuring the patient was admitted, he left the hospital but returned later that night. Around 11 pm he returned to the hospital to assist the same patient with an X-ray, accompanied by the patient’s family. After spending some time with them, he left the hospital building.
- 9th August, early hours– At around 1 am, Sanjay returned to help another patient whose surgery was scheduled. He consumed alcohol with a patient’s relative behind the hospital building and provided financial assistance for their journey home.
- 9th August 3 am– Sanjay returned to the 3rd floor of the Chest Medicine building at the hospital. He entered the seminar hall where the lady doctor was resting, where he allegedly raped and murdered her. He left the hall after about 40-45 minutes.
- 9th August 4.30 am– CCTV footage captured Sanjay leaving the hospital premises at around 4.37 am. He returned to his barrack and went to sleep.
- Later that morning, Kolkata Police detained Sanjay Roy from the barrack after reviewing CCTV footage and observing his suspicious activities. Following a prolonged interrogation, the police arrested Sanjay Roy on the charges of rape and murder.
3 11th August 2024– The West Bengal government transferred the Superintendent of RG Medical College & Hospital over alleged lapses leading to rape and murder of a woman PG trainee doctor inside the hospital premises.
4 12th August 2024– Principal of the said college steps down from his post. The Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FRDA) announces a nationwide halt to effective services as a mark of protest.
5 13th August 2024– Protests grow stronger with doctors across the country coming together demanding action. Calcutta High Court observes that the rape and murder incident at the medical college is ‘so gruesome’, orders the former principal of college to take an extended leave. Hospital services nationwide were hit due to ongoing protest by doctors.
6 14th August 2024-CBI takes over the case, and take the accused in custody and begin probe.
7 15th August 2024– A large group of unruly mob stormed into RG Kar Hospital and vandalized the emergency department and nursing station, and even tried to destroy the evidence present in the seminar hall, where incident took place. The surprise was that the Kolkata police was silent bystander when all these was happening. This led people to believe that Sanjay Roy has a strong political link with the WB government and leaders of ruling TMC party.
8 17th August 2024– IMA national president sought PM Modi’s intervention in this rape and murder case of trainee doctor, saying that time is ripe for his intervention. The National Commission for Women (NCW) alleged that the college where murder took place, underwent sudden renovations,. Lapses in security and potentially leading to tempering of evidence.
Yesterday, the Supreme Court (SC) bench headed by Chief justice of India (CJI) heard a suo motu case related to the RG Kar hospital incident. The SC came down heavily on WB government and police as it raised serious concerns over the handling of the matter. The top court rapped the Mamata Banerjee led WB government over several aspects of the case, saying it could not comprehend how certain events unfolded in the wake of the ghastly crime that shocked the conscience of the nation.
The SC raised five big questions on the WB government in the backdrop of the case that included filing an FIR, action taken against college principal, vandalism in the proximity of crime scene, the initial suicide angle and delay in allowing the parents to see the body. The SC said it could not comprehend how “WB government allowed vandalisation of RG Kar hospital by Mob when it was the duty of the police to secure round the clock the hospital where ghastly crime took place.
The SC also set up a national taskforce comprising of nine eminent doctors along with country’s top bureaucrats as ex officio members to frame an action plan to prevent violence and sexual assault against medical professionals as well as safe and dignified work environment for them.
People across West Bengal and other parts of the country have criticized the alleged attempts to silence the protestors by the workers of TMC party, and further they are disappointed in the handling of rape-murder case by West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee. It is quite apparent that Mamata Banerjee and her party TMC did all the pressure tactics, threats and even violence to silence the protestors, and even deliberately delayed the case to be handed over to CBI.
The happenings in WB over the last few years have proved that TMC has leashed a jungle raj in WB, and they will go to any extent to subvert the justice.
Waiting for your feedback on this blog.
Anil Malik
Mumbai, India
21st August 2024