Kolkata:

It has been a month since a 31-year-old doctor was found raped and killed at a seminar hall in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. The incident has sparked nationwide outrage and every corner of Bengal has witnessed massive rallies demanding justice in the case. The Mamata Banerjee-led government has come under the scanner for its handling of the case and accused of shielding the accused and attempting a cover-up.

Days after the incident, following a petition from the victims’ parents, the Calcutta High Court transferred the sensitive case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). But nearly four weeks after the central agency took over the probe, there have been no more arrests apart from Sanjay Roy, in the rape-murder case. A civic volunteer who frequented the case, Roy was arrested by Kolkata Police a day after the incident and CBI took his custody later. The CBI has arrested Dr Sandip Ghosh, former principal of the state-run hospital, and three others for alleged financial irregularities at the hospital.

A CBI official has told news agency PTI about some of the factors that have proved to be roadblocks as it tries to unravel this heinous case.

The Crime Scene

The CBI official said they were unable to join several dots due to lack of evidence from the crime scene and this has affected the investigation. The central agency found that Dr Ghosh ordered the demolition of a restroom and a toilet near the seminar room on August 10, the day after the body was found. The CBI official said it is suspected that key pieces of evidence were lost when the Public Works Department carried out demolition in the area.

A video that emerged on social media showed the seminar room crowded with people soon after the victim’s body was found. Questions on whether the crime scene was compromised were also raised after the mob violence in the hospital on the night of August 14.

Kolkata Police, however, has stressed that the crime scene was intact. “A video has gone viral showing the place of occurrence. This is a clarification. The body found in the seminar hall was in one portion of the seminar hall. 40 feet of the room was cordoned off. The video is outside the cordoned-off area where family members, doctors and the police were present,” a Kolkata Police spokesperson had said.

Earlier, after the mob violence, the cops had said the crime scene was intact and warned against spreading fake news.

Sanjoy Roy Only Accused?

The victim’s parents had said in their petition in Calcutta High Court that they suspected gangrape. They have also alleged that evidence and the crime scene were tampered.

“When we reached there (after her death), we found several people inside the seminar hall, one policeman guarding the entrance of it and many more standing outside. It can be assumed that the entire scene was very carefully arranged. Going by the brutality of the crime, the scene could not be so,” the victim’s mother said.

The CBI official blamed lack of evidence for affecting the investigation. “There is a lack of evidence in this case. That is the reason why our detectives are unable to come to a conclusion. Circumstantial evidence, questioning of people and the DNA evidence do not show involvement of multiple persons in the sexual assault on the woman,” the official told PTI.

He said the DNA tests found a match between the victim and Roy.

“Separate DNA profiling on samples gathered from the victim and Roy and the DNA comparing with other seized evidence from the crime scene also corroborated the CFSL report,” the official said.

But the lawyer representing Sanjoy Roy has said he had been framed to shield the actual criminals.

Financial Irregularities

The investigation into the rape and murder case has opened a can of worms and unearthed massive corruption in the hospital. While Mr Ghosh and three others have been arrested, the CBI official said they have found more names.

“More people were involved in the irregularities which were carried out in a well-planned manner,” he said, adding that in some cases, there were no footprints of financial misconduct.

The central agency has told a court Dr Ghosh played a vital role in siphoning off funds and was behind 84 illegal appointments during his tenure as principal from 2022 to 2023. The Enforcement Directorate is conducting a simultaneous investigation of the alleged financial irregularities.

It has found that the former principal and his wife own a luxurious bungalow in South 24 Parganas district and more property.