New Delhi: In a significant development, the Calcutta high court on Tuesday (August 13) has handed over the investigation into the gruesome rape and murder of a second-year PG medical student at Kolkata’s R.G. Kar Hospital to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Live Law reported.
The decision comes after the victim’s parents and others filed petitions expressing concerns over the state police’s handling of the case.
The high court bench, comprising Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya, noted that the investigation had made little progress, and the administration’s lack of support for the victim’s family raised suspicions. The court pointed out that a case of unnatural death was initially registered, which is unusual given the circumstances.
Further, the bench observed that the principal of the hospital, where the victim worked, had not even filed a complaint or given a statement. The court feared that evidence might be destroyed if the investigation continued under the state police. Therefore, it transferred the case to the CBI to ensure a fair and impartial investigation, restore public confidence, and deliver justice to the parties involved.
“There has been no significant progress in the investigation. The administration was not with the victim or her family. The principal has not even given a statement. Without significant progress in the investigation, we would be well justified in accepting the prayers by the victim’s parents that evidence would be destroyed. Therefore we transfer the investigation to the CBI to do justice between parties and to inspire public confidence,” the bench was quoted as saying by Live Law.
This case pertains to the alleged rape and murder of a 31-year-old doctor. Her dead body was found in the seminar hall in Kolkata’s R.G. Kar Medical College on Friday (August 9). She was partially naked with a hair clip near her private parts. Moreover, she was bleeding from her eyes, mouth and private parts, and there were eleven injury marks on her left leg, neck, right hand, ring finger and lips.
The principal of the medical college, Dr Sandip Ghosh, initially attempted to dismiss the case as a suicide, stating that “it was irresponsible of the girl to go to the seminar hall alone at night”.
Following widespread condemnation and protests, the police registered it as a case of rape and murder, eventually arresting Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer allegedly caught on camera entering and leaving the premises. Local media reports describe Roy as a man with a history of necrophilia, torture and extortion
