Kolkata Doctor’s Rape-Murder: Controversial Renovation at RG Kar Hospital Fuels Evidence Tampering Allegations

Kolkata Doctor’s Rape-Murder: Controversial Renovation at RG Kar Hospital Fuels Evidence Tampering Allegations

A new political storm has erupted in Kolkata following the rape-cum-murder of a trainee doctor, with Left-wing groups and the Bharatiya Janata Party accusing RG Kar Medical College and Hospital authorities of tampering with crucial evidence.

The renovation work that began near the seminar room where the doctor’s body was found a few days ago was raised as an objection by the DYFI and SFI, affiliate organisations of the CPI(M). The protesters assembled in front of the gate of the Emergency building of the hospital and alleged that the authorities were trying to destroy evidence deliberately to protect the real culprits.

A doctor from the Left-affiliated Joint Forum of Doctors claimed that the postmortem report indicated the possibility of multiple persons being involved in the crime. “It is clear that this is not the work of a single individual… she was gang-raped,” stated Dr. Subarna Goswami, who was accompanying the family when they went through the post-mortem report.

The Kolkata Police had arrested civic volunteer Sanjoy Roy in connection with the rape and murder of the 31-year-old doctor. The Central Bureau of Investigation, however, took over the case at 10 am on Wednesday based on a Calcutta High Court order.

BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya took to X to level allegations that the state government, under Mamata Banerjee, was complicit in a cover-up.

He claimed that the administration deliberately demolished walls in the TBM department, where the alleged crime occurred, as a way of destroying evidence. As Malviya put it: “This leaves no one in doubt that Mamata Banerjee was all along eliminating evidence and covering the crime trail to protect those involved,” leaving insinuations that big names could be involved.

According to The Indian Express, hospital authorities had ordered demolition of a room and a nearby women’s toilet, located just a few feet from the seminar room where the body was found, following student demands for a rest area in the department of Chest Medicine.

DYFI state secretary Minakshi Mukherjee, who led the protests at RG Kar Medical College, charged the TMC government with trying to shield the real culprits. BJP MLA and Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Suvendu Adhikari levelled the same allegations and demanded Mamata Banerjee’s resignation, wanting the CBI to take immediate control of the probe.

Also Read: High Court Criticizes Handling of Kolkata Doctor Rape-Murder: ‘RG Kar Principal Should Have Been First to Be Questioned’

Now, a CBI team arrived in Kolkata to take over the case investigation, accompanied by a specialized medical and forensic team from Delhi. The Calcutta High Court directed the Kolkata Police to hand over all documents without any delay to the CBI. Doctors and medical students held protests at AIIMS Delhi in solidarity with the victim after FAIMA called for a nationwide shut-down of OPD services beginning Tuesday. The agitation is to press for the demand of justice and outrage over the tragedy.