The twists and turns in the Kolkata doctor’s rape-murder case are never-ending. As protests demanding justice and political blame games took over, the Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance and heard the matter on Tuesday. The top court asked the authorities concerned about the chronology and timings of the events related to the case and expressed doubts over actions taken.
Terming the rape and murder case of a medic at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital as horrific, the Supreme Court came down heavily on the West Bengal government over the delay in filing FIR and sought status reports from probe agencies. It also constituted a 10-member task force to formulate a national protocol to ensure safety and facilities for doctors.
On Delay in filing FIR
The top court slammed the West Bengal government over the delay in filing an FIR after the 31-year-old doctor’s body with severe injury marks was found inside the seminar hall of the hospital’s chest department on August 9.
What police said Kolkata Police chief Vineet Goyal had said a case of unnatural death was filed. “Unnatural death case is a natural process. Murder is an unnatural death. When there is no immediate complaint, you have to do an inquest. An inquest is preceded by an unnatural death case. So, I don’t see why it is being said that by registering an unnatural death case, we wanted to hush up the matter and make it look like a suicide case.”
“It appears crime was detected in early hours, medical college principal tried to pass it off as suicide, and asked what were hospital authorities doing,” a bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said.
After the senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who was appearing for the state informed the court that the deceased doctor’s father was the first to file an FIR in the case at 11.45 pm on August 9, the court questioned the hospital authorities’ sluggish response.
Solicitor General Mehta sought to change the top police official of the state. CJI Chandrachud said, “Let the power of the state of West Bengal not unleash on the protesters.”
The court said that the nation cannot wait for another such incident to see a change in circumstances. It ordered the constitution of a task force to look into the matter, which will include central government officials.
The apex court said most young doctors are putting in 36 hours of work and there was a need to evolve national protocol to ensure safe conditions at the workplace. The court has asked the committee to submit an interim report in three weeks, directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to submit a status report by August 22, and asked the West Bengal government to submit a status report on the overall probe into the vandalism incident by August 22.
On Sandip Ghosh
The Central Bureau of investigation (CBI) is questioning former RG Principal Sandip Ghosh, who resigned after protests over the incident on August 12 but was appointed principal at a different within hours. Following Calcutta High Court’s directives, he filed a leave application. Kolkata Police on Tuesday filed a corruption case against Ghosh after the education department flagged financial irregularities.
“It appears crime was detected in early hours, medical college principal tried to pass it off as suicide,” the court said.
The court questioned the Bengal government’s improper initial actions and asked, “After the principal (Sandip Ghosh) resigned from here, he was assigned as principal in some other college. That too when his conduct is in question?” the court asked.
“The brutality of the sexual assault has shocked the conscience. Parents were permitted to see the dead body after several hours, the high court transferred the investigations to CBI on the eve of Independence Day. Soon after, a large mob vandalised the hospital. We are unable to comprehend how the state was not able to handle the issue of vandalism at the hospital,” the court said.
On RG Kar Vandalism
The Kolkata Police has arrested 25 people so far for vandalising the RG Kar Hospital in Kolkata on Thursday, amid midnight protests by women across West Bengal.
Police officials told CNN-News18 that they are actively investigating the possibility of this being a pre-planned attack. “Whether this was a conspiracy, or if someone sent them or they came up with a plan – we will know only after thorough questioning of those arrested. We are not ruling out the conspiracy angle. It is very much a part of our investigation,” Additional CP Murlidhar Sharma told CNN-News18.
The emergency ward, nursing station, medicine store, and parts of the outpatient department of the hospital were vandalised by the miscreants. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said on Thursday evening that two floors of its emergency ward have been destroyed, medicines looted and infrastructure and equipment severely damaged.
Officials told CNN-News18 that those arrested were armed and seemed to have reached the hospital in smaller groups of six-10 from localities such as Howrah or Dumdum.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said West Bengal should not be in denial mode and there was a complete failure of law and order in state.
He said a mob of 7,000 people cannot enter the hospital without knowledge of the Kolkata Police.
The bench rapped the Kolkata Police and asked how a mob of thousands entered the RG Kar Medical College. The Supreme Court raised doubts over the vandalism in Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital and the attempts to alter the crime scene late last Thursday. “The next day, doctors were protesting. A mob entered the hospital where the crime scene was. What was the police doing?” the court asked.
Doctor’s demands and CBI probe
The doctors’ strike over the rape and murder of the medic completed a week on Sunday and is now entering its second week, causing difficulties for patients.
The protesting doctors want the CBI to catch the culprits and for the court to impose the maximum punishment on them. They also want an assurance from the government that “no such incidents occur in the future”.
On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.
The high court ordered the transfer of the probe to the CBI while hearing petitions, including one moved by the victim’s parents praying for a court-monitored probe.
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