1. The Supreme Court said that it has taken suo motu cognisance as the Kolkata rape-murder case raises “systematic issues regarding the safety of doctors across India”. 

2. The bench headed by the Chief Justice said it is “deeply concerned” about the absence of safe working conditions for young doctors.

3. “If women are not able to go to work and conditions are not safe, we are denying them equality,” the top court said.

4. The Supreme Court also said that it is “deeply concerned” with the fact that the name of the victim has been all over the media, and the photographs and videos are all over the media. “This is extremely concerning,” the court said.

5. “Most young doctors putting in 36 hours, we must evolve national protocol to ensure safe work conditions,” the bench, also comprising justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, observed.

6. The court also said that it appears that the crime was detected in the early hours and that the medical college principal “tried to pass it off as suicide”. Sandip Ghosh, who resigned as the principal of RG Kar Medical College just two days after the incident, has been under scrutiny by the CBI and questioned for nearly 53 hours over the past four days regarding his actions following the doctor’s death. 

7. “When the conduct of the RG Kar Hospital’s principal was under scrutiny, how was he appointed to another college immediately,” the Supreme Court asked, referring to Sandip Ghosh’s appointment as the principal of the Calcutta Medical College, the city’s top teaching hospital, shortly after he resigned from the RG Kar Hospital.

8. The Supreme Court also said that the power of the West Bengal government should not be “unleashed on protestors”. “It’s a time of national catharsis,” the bench said.

9. “The West Bengal government was expected to maintain law and order and protect the crime scene, unable to comprehend why the state could not do so,” it said.

10. The top court also said that the safety of doctors and women doctors is a matter of national interest and the principle of equality does not demand anything less. “The nation can’t wait for another rape for it to take some steps. There are legislations in states to protect medical professionals but they do not address the systemic issues,” Chief Justice DY Chandrachud said.

The body of the postgraduate trainee doctor was found in the seminar hall of the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9, triggering nationwide protests. A civic volunteer has been arrested in connection with the crime.

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