Innumerable people in Kolkata have taken to the streets to protest against the handling of a rape and murder case at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. On August 10, a 31-year-old resident trainee doctor was brutally raped and murdered at night while she was on a 36-hour duty. Her body was found the next day inside a seminar hall where she allegedly went to rest at night.
On Tuesday, September 3, a group of protesting junior doctors met with Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal and handed him a letter demanding his resignation. They also presented him with a symbolic gift – a replica of a human spine – to suggest he should “have a backbone” and take responsibility, reported The Hindu.
The protest began on Monday when hundreds of doctors gathered near the Kolkata Police headquarters in Lalbazar, carrying roses and the spine replica. They accused the police of being ineffective in investigating the case and demanded that Commissioner Goyal come to the protest site on BB Ganguly Street if they were not allowed to march to Lalbazar.
Protests by West Bengal Junior Doctor’s Federation continues from yesterday.
They have gifted a #Spine structure model to kolkata police.#JusticeForRGKar @TajinderBagga @pradip103 pic.twitter.com/unj5VZNad6— Yash Binani (मोदी का परिवार) (@YashBinani93) September 3, 2024
The demonstration continued throughout the night, with doctors refusing to leave until they were heard. After a 22-hour standoff, the police finally allowed a delegation of 22 doctors to meet the Commissioner. The protesting doctors have criticized the police for a poorly conducted investigation from the start and for failing to prevent vandalism at the RG Kar Hospital on the night of August 14, where goons attacked protesting doctors inside the hospital premises, reported Times Now.
The CBI has arrested RG Kar Medical College and Hospital’s ex-principal Sandip Ghosh under corruption and financial misconduct charges, reported ANI.
In addition to this, the West Bengal assembly unanimously passed an anti-rape ‘Aparajita’ bill brought in by the Mamata Banerjee government. According to India Today, the Aparajita Woman and Child Bill (West Bengal Criminal Laws and Amendment) 2024, provides for the death penalty for rape and sexual offences for persons convicted of rape if their actions result in the victim’s death or leave her in a vegetative state. In addition, it stipulates a life sentence without parole for those convicted of rape.
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