Junior Doctors Continue Protest; RG Kar’s Ex-Principal Sandip Ghosh Undergoes Medical Test After Arrest | Updates

Junior doctors on Tuesday (September 3) stayed put and continued their protest near Lalbazar — the Kolkata Police headquarters — demanding the resignation of city police commissioner Vineet Kumar Goyal. They took out a rally last night (September 2) after they were stopped from marching further.

The protesters, who have been seeking justice in the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, wanted to move forward but were stopped. Joint police commissioner (traffic) Rupesh Kumar met the doctors and told them that a delegation of 20 representatives can be allowed to meet the commissioner or any other senior officer, but they refused and decided to stay at the protest site and continue their agitation.

“From our side, we have requested them multiple times that 163 BNSS (Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita) provision is implemented… if they want to send a delegation they can come and see the senior officers and give the letter if they want to,” Kumar said.

Doctors at the protest site were jubilant after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested former principal Sandip Ghosh and three others for alleged financial irregularities at the institution late on Monday. The accused, who will be produced before a court later in the day, underwent a medical test after their arrest. This was conducted by doctors of BR Singh Hospital (Eastern Railway) at the CBI Anti-Corruption Branch.

Here are the latest updates:

Stringent ‘anti-rape’ Bill to be tabled in Bengal assembly today

The Aparajita Women And Child (West Bengal Law Amendment) Bill, 2024, will be placed in the state legislative assembly on Tuesday. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will speak on the proposed legislation that has stringent anti-rape provisions.

The Bill seeks to introduce robust provisions for investigation and adjudication aimed at punishing acts of rape against women and sexual offences against children.

To speed up probe and ensure swift justice for victims, this Bill establishes a dedicated special court and investigation team. These specialised units will be equipped with the necessary resource and expertise to handle such cases in an efficient, effective and timely manner.

The special Aparajita task force will be headed by a DSP-rank officer who will monitor all these cases.

Sandip Ghosh arrested, to be produced in court today

Late on Monday (September 2), the CBI arrested RG Kar hospital’s former principal Sandip Ghosh and three others in connection with alleged financial irregularities at the institution, which is already under intense scrutiny over the woman doctor’s death. Officials said the three others who have been arrested are Ghosh’s security guard Afsar Ali (44), and hospital vendors Biplav Singha (52) and Suman Hazara (46) who used to supply material to the hospital.

Ghosh’s arrest came on the 15th day of his questioning. From the CBI’s Salt Lake office, the 53-year-old was taken to the Nizam Palace office, which houses the anti-corruption wing, and was arrested. This is the second major arrest at the hospital since August 9.

On August 23, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe into the alleged financial irregularities at the RG Kar hospital from a state-constituted special investigation team (SIT) to the CBI. The direction came in response to a petition by former deputy superintendent of the facility, Dr Akhtar Ali, who prayed for a probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into multiple counts of alleged financial misconduct at the state-run institute during Ghosh’s tenure as its principal.

Protestors across social and political circles of the state have accused the Mamata Banerjee administration of shielding Ghosh by not issuing a suspension order. In its FIR registered on the directions of the HC, the CBI has booked Ghosh and three Kolkata-based private entities — Ma Tara Traders of Madhya Jhorehat, Banipur, Howrah; Eshan Cafe of 4/1, Belgachia and Khama Louha. The premises of all these FIR named entities were searched during the operation. The agency has filed the FIR against Ghosh and the private entities under charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Junior doctors allege inaction in RG Kar vandalism case

Junior doctors started an impromptu sit-in near Lalbazar on Monday evening (September 2), demanding that Kolkata police commissioner Vineet Goyal should come and meet them there. The protesters have been alleging inaction in stopping vandalism at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 14.

Earlier in the day, the protesters were stopped before guardrails put up by the police on BB Ganguly Street, leading to Lalbazar. They asserted that their rally was peaceful and the representatives want to meet the police commissioner.

They also carried a replica of a spine and red roses, contending that these were to emphasise the duty of the police force to protect citizens. Some placards displayed the photo of Goyal with texts calling for his resignation.

An effigy of the police commissioner was also burnt by the protesters. The agitating doctors also raised slogans, seeking exemplary punishment for the perpetrators of the alleged rape and murder of the doctor.

A large number of police personnel were deployed in the area, and guardrails tied with chains and padlocks put up on BB Ganguly Street to stop the rally from reaching the police headquarters.

TMC student wing suspends senior member over ‘being in room’ after doctor murder

The Trinamool Congress student wing on Monday (September 2) suspended a senior member following allegations that he was seen, along with the police, in a room at RG Kar hospital, where the body of the woman doctor was found on August 9.

Trinamool Chhatra Parishad state president Trinankur Bhattacharya said in a statement that Avik Dey, who is also a postgraduate trainee of SSKM Hospital, has been suspended with immediate effect in the wake of “certain allegations against him regarding the crime scene following the unfortunate incident at RG Kar”.

“TMCP has suspended him from the organisation… until the ongoing investigation is concluded,” Bhattacharya said in the notice. A section of the media claimed, quoting some doctors, that a person, wearing a red shirt, seen in a video after the discovery of the body of the woman medic in the seminar hall of the hospital resembled Dey.

Although Kolkata Police claimed it was not Dey but one of their fingerprint experts, debates continued over the identity of the person in the red shirt. Dey, however, has denied that he was present at the hospital at that time.

“We will wait till the CBI investigation is over before taking any further decision about Avik,” Bhattacharya told PTI. The surfacing of the video led to allegations and suspicions of destruction of crucial evidence after the crime.

Don’t speak ill of protesters: Abhishek to TMC leaders

Senior Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Monday asked party leaders not to speak ill of any agitator from the medical fraternity and civil society in the wake of mounting street protests in West Bengal following the RG Kar rape-murder case.

Banerjee, the national general secretary of the party, issued a statement on his official X handle amid reports of senior party leaders making scathing remarks against protesters hitting the streets over the issue.

“Public representatives across party lines need to be more HUMBLE and SYMPATHETIC. I urge everyone in @AITCofficial not to speak ill of anyone from the MEDICAL FRATERNITY OR CIVIL SOCIETY,” the Diamond Harbour MP said.

“Everyone has the right to protest and express themselves. This is what sets West Bengal apart from other BJP-ruled states,” he added.

In an apparent dig at the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, he said, “We have wholeheartedly fought against the BULLDOZER MODEL AND OPPRESSION TACTICS of politics. Now is the time for constructive actions to ensure such horrific incidents are not repeated,” the de facto number two in the TMC said.

Referring to the glorious heritage of West Bengal, he said, “We must stand united in this fight and not stop until the perpetrators are punished and an ANTI-RAPE Time Bound law is enacted by both the states and union government.”

Reacting to his statement, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly and BJP MLA Suvendu Adhikari said, “The recent provocative remarks by TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee where she egged on her party men to react in a strong manner to opposition barbs, has apparently encouraged and emboldened her party leaders and workers. Action should be taken against her by the party if they (TMC) are serious.”

(With PTI inputs)