Kolkata doctor’s family claims police tried to suppress case, bribe them

Mangalore Today News Network

Kolkata, September 5, 2024: Family members of the trainee doctor who was raped and murdered last month at a state-run hospital in Kolkata stated on Wednesday that the Kolkata Police attempted to suppress the case by hurriedly cremating the doctor’s body and even tried to bribe them.

“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 examination," said the father of the 32-year-old doctor, who was killed at RG Kar Hospital on August 9, as he joined a protest over the incident in Kolkata.

He added, "Later, when the body was handed over to us, a senior police official offered us money, which we immediately declined."

The case was initially investigated by the Kolkata Police but was later handed over to the CBI after the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the investigation to the central agency.

Meanwhile, protests continued in Kolkata and other parts of the state. On Wednesday night, thousands of women took to the streets as part of the ’Reclaim the Night’ campaign. The parents of the trainee doctor also joined the protest to support the junior doctors fighting for justice for their daughter.

As the protest continued, the West Bengal Assembly on Tuesday unanimously passed an anti-rape bill seeking capital punishment for rape convicts if the victim dies or is left in a vegetative state. It also proposes a life sentence without parole for other perpetrators.

In another development, the CBI arrested Dr. Sandip Ghosh, the former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, in connection with alleged financial misconduct at the establishment. The student doctors have alleged that the hospital authorities paid no heed to their repeated demands for increased security infrastructure and measures inside the hospital.