Kolkata:

The former principal of Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital and the station house officer (SHO) who initially investigated the rape and murder of a trainee doctor have been arrested by the CBI for allegedly misleading investigators and trying to hide evidence.

With their actions, the former principal Sandip Ghosh and the police officer allegedly tried to sabotage the investigation into the rape and murder case, which had sparked outrage across the nation.

The arrests came hours after protesting doctors returned from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s house without meeting her after she denied their request to live-stream the meeting.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which has been questioning Sandip Ghosh over alleged financial irregularities, has added rape and murder charges against him.

The trainee doctor was raped and murdered inside the seminar hall of RG Kar Medical College on August 9. The key suspect, Sanjay Roy, was seen on CCTV during investigation after the trainee doctor’s body was found. The CBI has already conducted a polygraph test on Sanjay Roy, but could not conduct a narco analysis test after he did not give consent, which is needed as per the law.

The CBI took over the case from the Kolkata Police on the Calcutta High Court’s order.

Sanjay Roy, who was a civic volunteer at the hospital, had gone to the red light area Sonagachi on August 8 night. There, he drank alcohol and visited two brothels one after another, sources had said. He then went to the hospital after midnight. He was arrested based on CCTV footage in which he was seen entering and leaving the seminar hall.

The CBI had also questioned Anup Dutta, an assistant sub-inspector and member of the city police welfare board. Mr Dutta’s proximity to Sanjay Roy was suspected to have led CBI officers to understand how Sanjay Roy could have had free access to police barracks where he stayed, and within an institution like RG Kar where he could move around freely at all times of the day.

Earlier today, Ms Banerjee did not allow the protesting doctors’ demand for live-stream of their meeting, citing the RG Kar Medical College case is being heard in the Supreme Court.

“I am requesting, please come and talk as you had requested for today’s meeting. At least come and have tea with me. Why are you disrespecting me? I keep waiting, but it seems you don’t want to meet. Forget politics for now… I will sign the minutes of the meeting, but there will be no live-streaming. It can happen only after Supreme Court permission,” Ms Banerjee said.

New Delhi:

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said her government will pay compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of 29 people who died, allegedly after not getting treatment due to the doctors’ strike over the rape and murder of a trainee doctor.

Junior doctors have been on a ‘cease work’ protest since August 9. A civil volunteer has been arrested for the alleged rape and murder of the junior doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

The case sparked outrage across the nation and led to protests across Bengal and other cities.

“It is sad and unfortunate that we have lost 29 precious lives due to disruption in health services because of long-drawn cease work by junior doctors,” Ms Banerjee said in a post on X.

“In order to extend a helping hand to the bereaved families, the state government announces a token financial relief of Rs 2 lakh to family members of each deceased person,” she added.

It is sad and unfortunate that we have lost 29 precious lives due to disruption in health services because of long drawn cease work by junior doctors.

In order to extend a helping hand to the bereaved families, State Government announces a token financial relief of Rs. 2 lakh…

— Mamata Banerjee (@MamataOfficial) September 13, 2024

Ms Banerjee yesterday said she was “ready to resign” for the “sake of people” after protesting junior doctors refused to meet her, unless the interaction was streamed live.

“I tried my best to sit with the junior doctors. I waited three days for them… Even when they didn’t accept the verdict of the Supreme Court, I waited for three days with my highest officials… We want justice for the victim… As per Supreme Court instruction, they (doctors) must join duty,” Ms Banerjee said.

The protesters have written to President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking their intervention in the impasse. Copies of a four-page letter written by the West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Front were also sent to Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar and Union Health Minister JP Nadda.

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose announced he will socially boycott the Chief Minister on public platforms. His message came after the proposed meeting between the Chief Minister and the junior doctors did not work out.

A Kolkata court today declined the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) request to conduct a narco-analysis test of Sanjoy Roy, the key accused in the rape and murder case. He was seen on CCTV near the seminar hall where the body was found. The accused’s consent is mandatory to conduct the narco test.

The Enforcement Directorate on Friday conducted raids at the residence of Sandip Ghosh, the former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.

A 31-year-old trainee doctor was found brutally raped and murdered at the Kolkata college last month, sparking nationwide outrage over the safety of doctors and women in the country.

The probe agency has conducted raids at 5-6 locations connected to Ghosh and his associates. The house of Prasun Chatterjee, the hospital’s data entry operator, was also searched by the ED. 

Ghosh was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday in connection with alleged irregularities at the hospital during his tenure. The West Bengal government suspended him as he was placed in police custody for eight days.

The former Principal has undergone two rounds of polygraph tests in connection with the rape-murder case after he was accused of negligence in the matter, including failing to file a police complaint when the woman’s body was found.

While he does not face charges in connection with the killing of the doctor, he does face non-bailable corruption charges.

The Indian Medical Association has also suspended his membership.

Dr Ghosh has also come under fire from the Supreme Court which questioned his role in the horrific crime, underlining, that the delay in filing a police case was unacceptable.

“Why was FIR lodged almost 14 hours after discovery of the body… the Principal of the college should have come straightaway and directed filing of the FIR. Who was he in touch with?” the court had asked.

So far, one arrest has been made in connection with the rape and murder of the doctor – a police volunteer called Sanjoy Roy.

The ruling Trinamool and the opposition BJP have hit out at each other over alleged inaction in the case.

On Thursday, the parents of the victim alleged that the police initially tried to suppress the case and close it without a thorough investigation.

“The police, from the very beginning, tried to hush up the case. We were not allowed to see the body and had to wait at the police station while the body was taken for post-mortem examinations,” the father said while addressing the protesters.

New Delhi:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today assured strict action in cases of crime against women, amid a huge outrage over the rape and murder of a junior doctor in a hospital in Kolkata.

“The security of women is very important. I will once again tell every state government that crimes against women are unforgivable. No matter who the culprit is, they should not be spared,” PM Modi said at the ‘Lakhpati Didi Sammelan’ in Maharashtra’s Jalgaon today.

The Modi government describes a “Lakhpati Didi” as a self-help group member who earns an annual household income of Rs 1 lakh or more. This income is calculated for at least four agricultural seasons and/or business cycles, with an average monthly income exceeding Rs 10,000, so that it is sustainable.

“We are strengthening laws to ensure stringent punishment for those perpetrating crimes against women,” PM Modi said.

Jalgaon, Maharashtra: ‘The security of women is also very important for our country. I will once again tell every state government that crimes against women are unforgivable. No matter who the culprit is, they should not be spared,’ says PM Modi at the Lakhpati Didi Sammelan pic.twitter.com/6I1SSo9FOk

— IANS (@ians_india) August 25, 2024

The rape and murder of a junior doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital had sparked protests across the nation. It had led to a bitter political battle between West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress and BJP leaders over deteriorating condition of women’s safety.

At the Jalgaon event, PM Modi said his government has done more for women in the last 10 years than was done by all the previous regimes since Independence.

“Till 2014, less than Rs 25,000 crore loans were given to women self-help groups, but in the last 10 years, Rs 9 lakh crore was given,” PM Modi said.

Batting for Maharashtra’s BJP-led Mahayuti government, he asked people to ensure support for years for the sake of stability and prosperity. “Maharashtra is the shining star of a developed India. The future of the state lies in more investment and job growth,” PM Modi said.

New Delhi:

Sandip Ghosh, the former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, has been in the eye of a massive storm since a trainee doctor’s body was found in the premises of the institution that he headed. Spelling more troubles for him, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) – which is probing the case – has filed a case of financial irregularities at the medical college during the tenure of Mr Ghosh.

The CBI took over the probe from a state-constituted Special Investigation (SIT) after directions by the Calcutta High Court. The order was issued on a petition by former deputy superintendent of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital Akhtar Ali, who requested a probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into alleged financial misconduct at the institution.

Mr Ghosh resigned as the principal of the RG Kar Medical College just two days after the 31-year-old postgraduate trainee doctor’s body was found inside a seminar hall on August 9. However, he was immediately appointed as the principal of Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital, a West Bengal government decision that was met with protests by students and tough questions by the Calcutta High Court.

The court ordered him to go on “long leave”, questioning his reappointment within 12 hours. “How did he step down and then be rewarded with another responsibility?”

On August 20, the Kolkata Police registered a corruption case against Mr Ghosh after the West Bengal government by Mamata Banerjee formed an SIT to probe the allegations of financial misconduct at the state-run hospital since 2021.

The SIT handed over all the necessary documents to the CBI today which re-registered the First Information Report.

Mr Ghosh had been questioned for nearly 88 hours by the CBI which will conduct a polygraph test on him today. The Calcutta High Court on Friday gave its go-ahead to the CBI for the polygraph test On Mr Ghosh and five others including the main accused, Sanjay Roy.

The CBI has been given a deadline of three weeks to submit a progress report on the investigation, which is to be presented on September 17.

The doctor’s rape and murder during her 36-hour duty has reignited concerns over the safety of women at their workplaces with junior doctors taking to the streets, demanding stricter laws against violence against doctors.

New Delhi:

With anger rising over the horrific rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, the report of the DNA samples collected from the victim’s body and the accused will likely become the most important piece of evidence in the case, sources said.

Several theories have emerged online that attempt to explain the brutality inflicted on the doctor. One of those theories claimed that there was more than one accused in the crime. 

So far, Sanjoy Roy, a civic volunteer at the hospital who assisted cops in traffic management, is the sole accused in the case. Roy was arrested after a CCTV camera in the hospital captured him entering the emergency building around 4 am on Friday, the same location where the doctor’s body was found in the hours later. Another big clue was a Bluetooth headset, that connected to his phone, found next to the victim’s body. 

However, sources say once the results of the DNA report are in, it will be clear whether one or multiple people were involved in the crime. If the sample does not show traces of other DNA apart from the Roy, investigators can rule out the involvement of multiple attackers in the case with some certainty.

While sources claim the DNA report should be enough to solve this case, the results of Sanjoy Roy’s psychological exam and polygraphy test will also play an important role even though they are not admissible in court. 

According to sources, the samples are currently being processed in the CBI’s Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) lab. A report will be available soon. 

After the autopsy of the trainee doctor was conducted, social media was flooded with posts claiming severe injuries to his body like fractured bones and 150 mg of semen which was allegedly found in her body, suggesting gangrape.

The Kolkata Police have denied these claims. “Someone said 150 gm semen is found. I don’t know where they have found this kind of Information. And it is circulating in media in all kinds of forms. People are tempted to believe it and they are trying to create confusion among the people.” Kolkata Police chief Vineet Goyal had said.

Bengaluru:

Saving lives was the childhood dream for 28-year-old doctor Radhika, but after the brutal rape and murder of a colleague her own safety has increasingly become a top concern. Earlier this month, at the government-run hospital where Radhika works in Kolkata, the battered and bloodied body of a 31-year-old woman doctor was found, sparking outrage.

One man has been detained, but the attack has focused anger on the lack of measures for female doctors to work without fear, and triggered protests and medical strikes.

“I was on night duty just two days before this incident,” Radhika said at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

“What she did is what any of us do — resting whenever, wherever we can”.

The murdered doctor was found in the teaching hospital’s seminar hall, suggesting she had gone there for a break during a long shift.

Radhika, whose name has been changed for fear of repercussions at her work, said conditions such as long working hours — with barely any time to eat or rest — were not unusual.

“This could have been any of us, and this still can be any of us,” she added.

Attacks all too common

Tens of thousands of citizens have joined protests, channelling anger not only at the chronic issue of violence against women, but also at the failure to provide secure working conditions for them.

According to the philanthropic organisation Dasra, women make up nearly 30 percent of doctors in India and 80 percent of nursing staff.

Attacks on female medics are all too common.

Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered a national task force to examine how to bolster security for healthcare workers, saying the brutality of the killing had “shocked the conscience of the nation”.

“The lack of institutional safety norms at medical establishments, against both violence and sexual violence against medical professionals, is a matter of serious concern,” the court order read.

It highlighted a lack of CCTV cameras and a failure to screen visitors to hospitals for weapons.

Medical superintendent Indira Kabade, who works at KC General Hospital in the southern city of Bengaluru, said she worries her staff can get home safely.

“We never know if anyone is following them from the hospital,” said Kabade, adding she and many female colleagues want “airport-like security”, including police posted inside the campus.

“Despite us working non-stop to save lives, there is a need to rethink safety at workplace,” Kabade said.

The gruesome nature of the doctor’s killing has invoked comparisons with the horrific 2012 gang rape and murder of a young woman on a Delhi bus.

Nearly 90 rapes a day were reported in 2022 in the country of 1.4 billion people.

Foul toilets

Exhausted doctors sleep where they can, snatching rest on a chair or the floor.

“They are just completely tired and their bodies cannot push anymore,” Radhika said.

There are restrooms for doctors — but men and women have to share, and some have no lock.

She described one moment of terror when two men barged into the room as she rested.

“I was really scared,” she said.

Foul sanitation — including often one toilet for male and female medics — illustrate a failure by the authorities to provide basic infrastructure.

The situation was particularly worrying when the women were menstruating, Radhika said.

In Kashmir, doctor Rubeena Bhat said some medics would rather use washrooms in houses neighbouring the hospital.

“It’s that bad,” she said.

‘Abuse every day’

One woman doctor in Thiruvananthapuram said she and her colleagues faced abuse every day, from verbal insults to physical molestation.

“There is no end to it,” she said.

Woman doctors have been encouraged to participate in self-defence classes organised by the medical association.

“Doctors are called gods or angels by some people,” the Kerala-based doctor said.

“So we think we are immune to crimes. And when such a crime happens at a place which we consider the safest place, we are all afraid”.

But while questions remain over her safety, Radhika is certain of her future.

“I will fight and continue to be in the healthcare service”, she said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:
The Resident Doctors Association (RDA) at the AIIMS Delhi will today provide elective OPD services outside the Nirman Bhawan, which houses the Union health ministry amid protests over the rape and murder of a trainee doctor in Kolkata on August 9.

Here Are Top Points On Doctors’ Strike:

Kolkata:

The investigating officers of the CBI are looking into the call details and chats of former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Sandip Ghosh, in connection with their probe into the rape and murder of a woman doctor.

Ghosh, who appeared before the CBI officers on the third consecutive day on Sunday, was asked to furnish details of the phone calls he made before, and after the incident at the hospital, an officer of the central probe agency said.

The sleuths are also mulling contacting the mobile phone service provider to get the details of Ghosh’s phone calls and data consumption, he added.

The former principal, who was grilled by the agency’s officers for over 13 hours from Saturday till past midnight, reached the CBI office at CGO Complex in Salt Lake at 11 am on Sunday.

“We have a list of questions for him,” the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officer told PTI.

Ghosh was asked to specify his role after getting the news of the death of the doctor, who he had contacted and why he made the parents wait for nearly three hours, he said.

The ex-principal was also questioned who had ordered the renovation of the rooms near the seminar hall at the emergency building of the hospital after the incident.

“We are trying to find out whether there was any conspiracy or pre-planning to the crime. What was the principal doing and whether he is involved with the incident in any manner,” the officer said.

The CBI sleuths would be verifying Ghosh’s replies with the versions of other doctors and interns who were on duty along with the victim doctor at the chest medicine department on the night of the incident.

So far, CBI has grilled over 20 people, including a couple of officers of the Kolkata Police, in connection with its investigation.

Ghosh declined to take any questions from the media while leaving the CBI office at CGO Complex in Salt Lake past midnight on Sunday.

The CBI officers grilled Ghosh first on Friday and then for around 13 hours on Saturday in connection with their investigation.

The former principal had resigned from the post two days after the woman’s body was found on August 9. He had expressed fears of being attacked, prompting his lawyer to seek protection from the Calcutta High Court. The court directed him to approach a single bench.

The body of the post-graduate trainee doctor was found in a seminar room at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. Police arrested a civic volunteer the next day in this connection. PTI SCH ACD

New Delhi:

Doctors have begun their 24-hour nationwide strike today in protest against the rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor in Kolkata.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has declared a nationwide withdrawal of non-emergency health services for 24 hours beginning at 6 am, over a week after the horrific incident at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. They also condemned the subsequent vandalism on the campus.

#WATCH | Patna, Bihar: Indian Medical Association (IMA) announces nationwide strike over RG Kar Medical College rape & murder incident.

(Visuals from Patna AIIMS) pic.twitter.com/kmCr5pq0ZN

— ANI (@ANI) August 17, 2024

All essential services will be maintained and casualties will be manned, the IMA said in a statement. The routine OPDs will not function and elective surgeries will not be conducted.

The withdrawal is across all sectors, wherever modern medicine doctors are providing service, the top body of doctors said.

“The RG Kar incident has brought to the fore two dimensions of violence in the hospital: A crime of barbaric scale due to the lack of safe spaces for women and the hooliganism that is unleashed due to lack of an organised security protocol,” it said.

“The crime and the vandalism have shocked the conscience of the nation. Today, both the medical fraternity and the nation are victims,” the statement added.

5 Demands Of Doctors On Nationwide Strike

The IMA has put forth five demands:

1. It wants a significant policy to address violence against doctors and hospitals. The doctors’ body is pushing for a Central Act that would incorporate the amendments made in 2023 to the Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897 into the proposed Hospital Protection Bill of 2019. This move, it said, would strengthen the existing legislation in 25 states. The IMA has suggested that an ordinance similar to the one enacted during the COVID-19 pandemic would be appropriate in this situation.
2. The IMA has also demanded that hospitals be declared safe zones with the first step being mandatory security entitlements. “The security protocols of all hospitals should be no less than (that of) an airport. Declaring the hospitals as safe zones with mandatory security entitlements is the first step. CCTVs, deployment of security personnel, and the protocols can follow,” it said in the statement.
3. The IMA has demanded a thorough overhaul of the working and living conditions of resident doctors, including the 36-hour duty shift that the victim was in and the lack of safe spaces to take a rest.
4. The IMA has also called for a “meticulous and professional” investigation of the Kolkata horror in a specific time frame and rendering of justice besides identifying those involved in the vandalism of the hospital premises and awarding exemplary punishment.
5. The doctors’ body has also sought an appropriate and dignified compensation to the bereaved family commensurate with the cruelty inflicted.

The trainee doctor was raped and murdered last week inside a medical college in Kolkata where she worked, triggering nationwide protests among doctors. Anger at the failure of tough laws to deter a rising tide of violence against women has fuelled widespread protests by doctors and women’s groups across the country.