Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital Under Scrutiny: Renovation Work Fuels Controversy In Doctor’s Rape-Murder

A new political controversy has erupted in the Kolkata doctor's rape and murder case, as Left-wing groups and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have accused RG Kar Medical College and Hospital authorities of attempting to tamper with evidence related to the incident.

The Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and Students' Federation of India (SFI), both affiliated with the CPI(M), have raised concerns about renovation work that began near the seminar room where the doctor's body was discovered just days ago. They gathered at the hospital's Emergency building gate, alleging that the authorities were trying to destroy evidence to protect the real culprits.

A doctor from the Left-affiliated Joint Forum of Doctors claimed that the postmortem report suggested the victim might have been raped by multiple individuals. "It is clear that this is not the work of a single individual... she was gangraped," Dr. Subarna Goswami, who was with the victim's family when they reviewed the postmortem report, told The Indian Express.

So far, the Kolkata Police have arrested a civic volunteer, Sanjoy Roy, in connection with the 31-year-old doctor's rape and murder. On Wednesday morning, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took over the case.

Amit Malviya, head of the BJP IT cell, alleged that while West Bengal is seething with anger over Mamata Banerjee's indifference and the Kolkata Police's failed cover-up attempt, "RG Kar Medical College authorities break down room walls, inside the Chest Medicine Dept, where the on-duty junior doctor was subjected to brutal rape and murder, destroying what could be crucial circumstantial evidence, which could have led the CBI investigating team to the murderers."

Malviya further claimed on X that "Area marked as Resident Doctor's Area and Toilet (Female) inside the Chest Medicine Dept [is] also being broken down in the name of renovation. This leaves no one in doubt that Mamata Banerjee was all along eliminating evidences and covering crime trail to protect those involved in the heinous crime, who, it is speculated, happen to be family members of influential TMC leaders. Repeat: No woman is safe in Bengal."

According to sources cited by The Indian Express, hospital authorities ordered the demolition of a room and a nearby women's toilet on Saturday, both located just a few feet away from the seminar room, to build a rest area. This decision was reportedly made in response to students' demands for a rest area in the Chest Medicine department.

DYFI state secretary Minakshi Mukherjee, who joined the protests at RG Kar Medical College, accused the TMC government of attempting to shield the true perpetrators.

BJP MLA and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, stated, "They have already tampered with a lot of evidence. The CBI has to take the case immediately. We have already demanded the resignation of Mamata Banerjee, who is both Chief Minister and the state Home Minister."

A CBI team has arrived in Kolkata to begin investigating the rape and murder of the trainee doctor, as ordered by the Calcutta High Court. The team, which includes specialized medical and forensic experts from Delhi, will take over the investigation.

On Tuesday, the Calcutta High Court directed a CBI probe into the sexual assault and murder of the woman post-graduate trainee (PGT) doctor on August 9. The court ordered the Kolkata Police to immediately hand over all relevant documents to the CBI.

In response to the incident, doctors and medical students held a protest at AIIMS Delhi, following a call from the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) for a nationwide shutdown of OPD services starting Tuesday, in solidarity against the sexual assault and murder of the woman doctor.