Kolkata:

The parents of the Kolkata doctor who was raped and killed last month, have accused the Kolkata Police of attempting to destroy evidence since the beginning of the case. Taking part in today’s massive protest march in Kolkata, the woman’s mother said, “The government, administration and the police have not cooperated with us since the beginning of the case”.

The police, she said, also tried to destroy the evidence “from the beginning”. “I request that mass protest should continue as long as we don’t get justice,” she added.

The woman’s father said the mass protests were bringing him hope that justice will be done. “I request everybody to stay with us. I know justice will not come so easily. We have to ensure justice. I hope that people will be with us since they are the main source of our strength,” he said.

The parents of the woman were part of the march held by the medical fraternity from Sealdah to Esplanade.

On September 4, the woman’s father had accused the police of deliberately delaying the registration of a First Information Report. He also claimed that a police officer had offered him money and tried to convince them to settle the matter.

He also accused another officer of Kolkata Police of deliberately trying to mislead people through incorrect media statements — even when the case has been handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation or the CBI.

Earlier, they had also claimed that they had wanted to preserve their daughter’s body for a second postmortem, but were forced to cremate her.

“About 300-400 cops surrounded us. We returned home and found some 300 cops were standing outside. They created such a situation that we were forced to cremate her,” her father said, setting off a major political row. The Trinamool Congress said the political parties should leave the bereaved parents alone.

“There should have been no politics here. Political parties should not bother them,” said state minister Shashi Panja.

Tomorrow, the Supreme Court will hear the case it has taken up on its own, during which the CBI is expected to present its report. The case was also heard by the Calcutta High Court, which, following the appeal by the  parents, had handed the investigation to the CBI.

While the protests over the rape-murder have acquired a life of their own, the woman’s parents are closely associated with it, and appear on crucial days. The woman’s mother, who lost her only daughter, today said, “Now, all these protesters are all my children”.

Elon Musk’s social media giant X has clashed with Justice Alexandre de Moraes (in picture) over its reluctance to comply with orders to block users. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Senior ICAR scientists hired laterally without reservation

More than 2,700 scientists at India’s top farm research body — accounting for an overwhelming majority of senior-level hires at the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) – have been recruited through lateral entry since 2007, undermining the goals of the reservation policy, documents accessed by The Hindu reveal.

Brazilian Judge Alexandre de Moraes suspends Elon Musk’s X platform after it refuses to name a legal representative

A Brazilian Supreme Court justice has ordered the suspension of Elon Musk’s social media giant X in Brazil after the tech billionaire refused to name a legal representative in the country, according to a copy of the decision seen by The Associated Press. The move on Friday (August 30, 2024) further escalates the monthslong feud between the two men over free speech, far-right accounts and misinformation.

At 6.7%, growth slid to five-quarter low in Q1

Signalling a moderation in the economy’s growth momentum, India’s real GDP rose 6.7% in the April to June 2024 quarter, the slowest in five quarters, and well below the Reserve Bank of India’s expectation of a 7.1% uptick as well as the 7.8% uptick registered in the preceding quarter.

Cyclone Asna forms over Kutch; rain continues in Gujarat

Cyclone Asna has formed over the Kutch coast in Gujarat and adjoining areas of Pakistan, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Friday. The cyclonic storm – a rare land-originating one in August and headed to the Arabian Sea – is expected to move further away from the western coast in the next 48 hours.

India yet to take a decision on Pakistan invite to SCO meet

The government confirmed on Friday (August 30, 2024) that it has received an invitation from Pakistan for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Heads of Government (HoG) meeting in Islamabad on October 15-16. However, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said it did not have a decision yet on whether India would participate and at what level that would be, even as it outlined other travel scheduled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September and October this year.

Uniform Civil Code is a small measure of justice for women: Vice-President

Echoing President Droupadi Murmu’s remarks on the rape and murder at the R.G. Kar hospital Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday said a society where “women and girls do not feel safe is not a civilised society”. He also backed a Uniform Civil Code, calling it a “small measure of justice” for women. 

Protests continue to rock Kolkata; Mamata writes to PM Modi again on ‘stringent’ laws

More than 20 days after the rape and murder of a doctor at the R. G. Kar Medical College and Hospital, protests continued to rock the city on Friday (August 30, 2024) with leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s women’s wing putting a giant-sized model of a lock on the gate of the West Bengal State Women’s Commission.

Ahead of Assembly elections, Congress expels two MLAs from Maharashtra

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole announced on Friday (August 30, 2024) the expulsion of MLAs Zeeshan Siddique and Jitesh Antapurkar from the party, just ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections. Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, Mr. Patole did not provide specific reasons for their expulsion, though the move comes over a month after it was revealed that seven Congress MLAs had cross-voted in the biennial elections for 11 Legislative Council seats.

Joint panel meeting on Waqf Bill witnesses heated debate

At a stormy eight-hour-long second sitting of Parliament’s Joint Committee on Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024, there was a heated exchange between the Opposition and the government members, especially on the clause allowing the District Collector to be the final arbitrator on Waqf properties. 

People in queer relationships can open joint bank accounts, nominate their partners: FinMin clarification

People from the LGBTQIA+ community and those in queer relationships cannot be prevented from opening joint bank accounts, the Union government said in an advisory issued this week, making it clear that they can also nominate each other as beneficiaries.

Security forces kill 5 militants in intel operations Pakistan’s violence-hit Balochistan province

At least five terrorists of a banned militant group were killed and three were injured in ongoing intelligence-based operations in multiple districts in Balochistan following a string of terror attacks last weekend.

2024 Paris Paralympics: Resilient Avani Lekhara fires India to a golden start

Be it the Olympics or the Paralympics, shooting has seen encouraging results for the Indian contingent at the Paris Summer Games. Avani Lekhara, Mona Agarwal and Manish Narwal all made the podium on the first day of shooting on Friday.