Kolkata:

The mother of Sanjay Roy, who was convicted for the rape and murder of the medic of R G Kar Medical College and Hospital, on Sunday said if her son is guilty then he should get the punishment he deserves, even if it means hanging.

She said she will “cry alone” but will accept his punishment as destiny.

Initially reticent to speak to the media after the Sealdah court convicted Sanjay on January 18, Malati Roy the mother of Sanjay told reporters on Sunday morning that being a woman, and a mother of three daughters, “I can feel the anguish and pain of the mother of the woman medic who is like my daughter.”

“If the court decides to hang him to death, I don’t have any objection as his crime has been proved in the eye of the law, I will cry alone but accept it as a quirk of fate, something willed by destiny,” the 70-year-old-woman said standing on the doorstep of her shanty on Shambhunath Pandit Street, about 5 km away from the commotion and buzz at Sealdah Court the other day.

Asked if she had turned up during any of the court hearings or met Roy at the lockup, she replied “No. Why should I? Despite my failing health I would have tried to visit if the charges were found to be untrue.” Sanjay has three sisters and one of them died years back.

One of the elder sisters, who lives close to Malati’s home, at her in-law’s place, on Saturday said in case he is proven guilty, the law should take its own course punishing him and the family has no plan to challenge the order on its own in any court.

The middle-aged woman, her face partially covered in dupatta, told reporters at a shanty in the Bhawanipore area that she had not visited the Sealdah Court room where her brother was produced and the court pronounced him guilty.

“Please leave me alone. We are shattered,” she said when reporters continued to ask if she thought her brother was really guilty.

“But if he has committed any crime, he should get proper punishment. We don’t have any plan to challenge the order on our part. I am living in my in-laws house. I don’t have any contact with my family since my marriage in 2007 while my mother is not well,” she said.

The woman, who did not wish to divulge her identity or name, said her brother used to be like any normal boy during his childhood days.

“As he grew up, he turned to booze but apart from that I myself did not ever hear any case about Sanjay misbehaving with any woman. Of course as we did not have regular contact with him in the past few years and he used to live in a separate locality I don’t have any fair idea about his associations and whether he was involved in any criminal offence,” she said.

The woman, however, added “There are reports in media that Sanjay was not alone at the site of crime. So I would expect that investigations must have been thorough to find only one person’s involvement in such a crime. Had others been involved directly or indirectly that should also be investigated and they should be brought to book.” “Since Sanjay’s arrest, we were under the stigma and everyone from neighbours to relatives would point fingers at us saying we are Sanjay’s family. I hope we are clearing the air now,” the elder sister said.

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

Sanjay Roy, the prime accused in the gruesome rape and murder case of a trainee doctor at the state-run RG Kar hospital, has been found guilty by a local court in Kolkata today. He will be sentenced on Monday.

Roy, a civic volunteer with the Kolkata Police, was found guilty under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita that deal with rape, murder, and causing death.

However, Roy claimed that he was not guilty and was “being framed”. As he was being taken out, Roy claimed a certain “IPS” (Indian Police Service) officer knew everything.

“I haven’t done this. Why are those who did it being allowed to go? I always wear a chain of rudraksh on my neck. If I committed the crime my chain would have been broken in place of occurrence. I can’t commit this crime,” he said.

Responding to him, the judge said he would have an opportunity to speak on Monday before the sentence is pronounced. “You will be heard on Monday. Now, I am sending you to judicial custody. Your punishment will be announced on Monday. I have fixed the time at 12:30 to hear. Then will announce the punishment,” Justice Das said.

The judgment was pronounced nearly two months after the in-camera trial commenced in November last year and over 160 days after the heinous crime was committed on August 9.

On August 9, body of a trainee woman doctor was found in a semi-naked state in the seminar hall of the RG Kar Hospital. A day after the incident, the Kolkata Police arrested Roy after he was seen entering the building around the estimated time of the crime in a CCTV footage.

Kolkata:

The father of the victim in the Kolkata rape and murder case broke down in court today after Sanjay Roy, the prime accused, was found guilty of the crime, more than five months after the incident sent shockwaves across the country.

Sanjay Roy, a former civic volunteer with the Kolkata Police, was found guilty under Sections 64 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) that governs rape, and Sections 66 and 103 (1) of the Act, which deal with punishments for death and murder.

The semi-naked body of the on-duty 31-year-old doctor was found on the third floor of the seminar hall of the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9 last year. Roy was arrested the next day.

When Anirban Das, the additional district and sessions judge of the Sealdah court, delivered the verdict, the victim’s father told him that he had “honoured the faith” he had in him.

The sentencing will take place on Monday.

During the hearing, Roy said he was being “framed”.

“I haven’t done this. Why are those who did it being allowed to go?,” the 33-year-old said, to which the judge said he would be given an opportunity to speak on Monday.

Sanjay Roy, currently held at Kolkata’s Presidency Jail, has consistently maintained his innocence, claiming he is being framed.

While investigators have alleged that he acted alone, the victim’s family have claimed that other persons were involved in the crime. They have also filed an application before the court seeking further investigation into the case.

The Kolkata Police, which was investigating the case initially, arrested Roy on August 10. The Calcutta High Court later transferred the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Roy’s in-camera trial commenced on November 12 and concluded on January 9, during which 50 witnesses were examined.

Kolkata:

Expressing disappointment with the CBI investigation, the parents of the doctor who was raped and murdered at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital said on Friday that they were heartbroken with the two key suspects in the case getting bail and it seemed like the “system” was failing them.

A court in Kolkata’s Sealdah granted bail to RG Kar Medical College and Hospital’s ex-principal Sandip Ghosh and former officer-in-charge of the Tala police station Abhijit Mondal in the rape and murder case of the on-duty doctor.

The CBI, which was handed the investigation into the case by the Calcutta High Court, failed to file a chargesheet against the accused within the mandatory 90-day period, leading to their release on bail.

“We thought the CBI would speed up the investigation and bring those responsible to justice. But now, with the accused being granted bail, it feels like the system is failing us,” said the mother of the victim whose body was found in the hospital on August 9.

“Every day, we wonder if this will be another case in which the powerful escape without punishment,” she said.

The arrested police officer was accused of delaying the filing of the FIR in the rape and murder case, while Sandip Ghosh faces charges of tampering with evidence. Both were arrested by the CBI.

Speaking to reporters outside the court, Mondal’s lawyer said he would soon be released from judicial custody.

Sandip Ghosh, who is also an accused in a separate case of financial irregularities at the RG Kar hospital, will remain in custody despite the bail in the rape-murder case, according to his lawyer.

“We are heartbroken. We trusted the CBI to deliver justice, but now we are left wondering if we will ever see justice for our daughter,” said the victim’s father.

The rape and murder of the on-duty doctor shocked the state, leading to never-seen-before protests across West Bengal.

The CBI took over the case after the high court intervened following allegations of mishandling by the police.

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

New Delhi:

The Supreme Court today refused to transfer the RG Kar rape-murder case trial outside West Bengal and rebuked a lawyer who claimed that the people of the state were losing faith in the police and the judiciary. Responding to a lawyer’s request to transfer the case, Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said, “Yes we have done it in cases like Manipur. But we are not doing anything like that here. No such transfer.”

At the outset, the bench, also comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra, went through the status report filed by the CBI, which is investigating the heinous rape and murder of a 31-year-old doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in August.

“We have seen the sixth status report filed by CBI, which indicates that the Additional Sessions judge has framed charges punishable under Sections 64 and 103 of BNS (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita). The next hearing is on November 11. Since the investigation is underway, we refrain from making observations. Let an updated status report be filed after four weeks,” said the Chief Justice, who retires this Sunday.

The bench also reviewed a report by the National Task Force formed to recommend steps to ensure safe working conditions for healthcare staff in hospitals. The Chief Justice said the report must be circulated among Chief Secretaries of all states/Union Territories so that they can make suggestions. He said this exercise must be completed in three weeks.

Senior Advocate Indira Jaising, appearing for doctors in Bengal, raised some objections. The Chief Justice asked her to submit the suggestions.

At one point, a counsel said that the people of West Bengal “have lost faith in the judiciary”. The Chief Justice responded sternly and asked the lawyer, “Who are you appearing for? Do not make such general statements. There is no such thing at all.” He added that this was “canteen gossip happening in court”.

The RG Kar rape-murder incident sparked massive protests across the country as doctors took to the streets to demand safety at the workplace. The Mamata Banerjee government drew fire as protesters alleged a cover-up attempt. The Calcutta High Court was not satisfied with the Kolkata Police probe and transferred the case to the CBI. The Supreme Court took suo motu cognizance of the matter and pulled up the hospital administration for its response after the doctor was found dead. The top court has been monitoring the CBI’s probe since. Once Chief Justice DY Chandrachud retires, the next Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna will take his place on the bench hearing the case.