The horrific death of a trainee doctor at a government-run hospital last week has stirred massive outrage in India.
As the investigation continues, shocking details of the alleged brutal rape and murder are coming to light.
The Lalbazar police summoned the Assistant Superintendent of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on Tuesday at 11:00 am.
Media reports say he called and spoke with family members of the victim at the hospital first.
‘Died by suicide’
According to a report from Anandabazaar Patrika, the deceased’s family said that they were first informed that their daughter had committed suicide.
“The Assistant Superintendent of the Chest Medicine Department called and said, ‘Your daughter died by suicide’. And then we saw the reality when we reached the hospital,” the woman’s father told the media, as per NDTV, adding that the official did not name himself during the call.
The 31-year-old victim’s mother also claimed that even after they reached the hospital, they were not allowed to see the body.
The claims have triggered allegations that the college administration attempted a cover-up after the female doctor’s body was found.
Similar claims were made to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during her visit to the deceased’s family on Monday.
Later on, she declared that they would look into who initially reported having committed suicide and that the individual would also be questioned by the police, as per News18.
In addition, seven junior doctors who were on duty the night of the incident — interns, house staff, and postgraduate trainees — have had their statements recorded by the police.
The victim is said to have had dinner with four of these officials around 2:30 in the morning after watching Neeraj Chopra’s javelin throw during the Paris Olympics.
The family members have told the media that the victim called her mother that night and told her to have dinner.
‘Insiders involved’
According to the victim’s family, there may have been involvement in the horrific crime by someone working in the chest medicine department.
When asked if his daughter had enmity with anyone in the department, her father said, according to NDTV, “No, but everyone can be jealous.”
“There were nurses and security, I am still unable to understand how this incident took place. Police have informed me that there was someone inside,” Ms Banerjee said yesterday.
The autopsy reports
The victim’s hands and face were discovered to have cut marks, according to the autopsy results.
According to the report, she also suffered a severe hit that broke off pieces of glass from her spectacles and got into her eyes.
The accused banged the deceased’s head against the wall, resulting in head injuries that were also reported, as per News18.
Her father claims she was assaulted and murdered inside the hospital after the preliminary autopsy revealed that she had experienced sexual assault before her death.
The four-page report also revealed that the woman was bleeding from her private parts and there were injury marks on other parts of her body.
“There was bleeding from both her eyes and mouth, injuries on the face, and a nail. The victim was also bleeding from her private parts. She also has injuries to her belly, left leg, neck, in her right hand, ring finger, and lips,” the report stated, as per India Today.
The accused’s fingernails are believed to have caused scratch scars on the woman’s face, suggesting that the victim attempted to defend herself.
“The mouth and throat were constantly pressed to prevent screaming. The throat was strangled to suffocate. The thyroid cartilage broke due to strangling,” the postmortem report said.
The case
On Friday, August 9, a female PGT doctor who was a second-year student in the department of chest medicine was discovered semi-naked inside the lecture hall at RG Kar Hall Medical College and Hospital.
Her body was covered with various marks from injuries.
She was on duty on Thursday.
Hospital principal Sandip Ghosh resigned from his position and government employment yesterday due to pressure following the rape and killing of the resident doctor.
“I am getting defamed on social media. It is not good. The deceased doctor was like my daughter. As a parent, I resign. I don’t like that this should happen to anyone in future,” he was quoted by ANI as saying.
Dr Ghosh was then appointed principal of another medical college in Kolkata in less than four hours, as per NDTV.
The city’s Calcutta National Medical College students are against this move and have questioned how a principal who can’t even guarantee safety on one campus can be successful on another.
Furthermore, the principal’s office doors have been closed by the students, who claim they will not allow him to report for duty.
The resignation of Ghosh was announced the day after the West Bengal government dismissed Sanjay Vashisth, the medical superintendent who also served as vice principal.
Bulbul Mukhopadhyay, the dean of student affairs, took over as superintendent and was given extra responsibilities.
The accused
The following day, Sanjay Roy, a volunteer for the community, was taken into custody in connection to the crime.
As an outsider, his position gave him easy access to other hospital departments, as per News18.
Roy was brought before Sealdah Court and charged with rape and murder under Sections 64 and 103 of the BNS. The court ordered Roy to police custody until August 23, reported India Today.
Media sources state that pornographic videos were discovered on his cell phone by the Kolkata police.
According to Mint which cited his neighbours, he was married four times, and three of them divorced him because of his allegedly abusive behaviour. Last year, his fourth wife passed away from cancer.
Roy’s neighbours claimed that he frequently returned home late at night and was often drunk.
Resident doctors on indefinite strike
The horrifying incident prompted medical residents at government hospitals around the nation to go on an indefinite strike, which shut down non-emergency procedures and outpatient appointments.
The protesters also called for the dismissal of all senior hospital officials and insisted that they not be transferred to another location, and they sought an apology from Kolkata Police for allegedly circulating misinformation about the inquiry.
They have also demanded an immediate handover to the CBI and a transparent investigation into the matter, as per Hindustan Times.
If the police are unable to solve the case by Sunday, Chief Minister Banerjee stated she would recommend a CBI investigation.
“I want the police to arrest the culprits as soon as possible. If they are unable to crack the case by Sunday, we will hand it over to the CBI. I don’t have an issue with the central agency taking over, but its success rate is low,” the CM said.
With inputs from agencies
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Kolkata rape and murder: How hospital misled doctor’s family to believe she died by suicide
