Kolkata RG Kar Rape-Murder Case: One Month On, CBI Faces Tough Time As Probe Continues

It has been a month since the brutal rape-murder case of a trainee doctor in Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College. The case was subsequently transferred to the CBI but the task has proved to be a tough call for the central probe agency. However, despite the arrest of Sanjay Roy, the main accused in the case, the investigators are still clueless about the motive and how the incident unfolded. The CBI has already told the court that the crime scene was altered and the evidence was not secured. The body of the trainee doctor was found in the seminar room of the RG Kar Medical Hospital on August 9.

CBI sources told PTI that they were unable to join several dots due to lack of evidence from the crime scene and this affected the investigation of the crime. On August 10, police arrested Sanjoy Roy, a civic volunteer with the Kolkata Police. During the investigation, it was revealed that Dr. Sandip Ghosh, the former principal of the hospital, had ordered the demolition of a restroom and a toilet near the seminar room on the same day. With portions of these areas demolished by the PWD, there are suspicions that crucial evidence may have been destroyed in the process.

The CBI has grilled witnesses including Ghosh, other doctors, officials, security guards and the arrested prime accused, Sanjay Roy. "There is a lack of evidence in this case. That is the reason why our detectives are unable to come to a conclusion. From circumstantial evidence, questioning of people and the DNA evidence do not show involvement of multiple persons in the sexual assault on the woman," a CBI officer told PTI.

He stated that forensic tests conducted at the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) confirmed a DNA match between the victim and the arrested civic volunteer. The official informed PTI that separate DNA profiling of samples collected from both the victim and Roy, along with comparisons to other seized evidence from the crime scene, further supported the CFSL report.

The parents of the victim have also levelled serious allegations claiming that they were offered money to take back the case. They also questioned the police's inaction to secure the crime scene. "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 mother of the victim said.

In the case of financial irregularities at the hospital, for which former principal Dr. Sandip Ghosh and three others were arrested, a CBI officer revealed that additional individuals involved have been identified. The central agency informed the court that Ghosh played a key role in embezzling funds and orchestrated 84 illegal appointments during his tenure as principal from 2022 to 2023.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is also conducting a parallel investigation into the financial misconduct, uncovering that Ghosh and his wife own a luxurious bungalow in the South 24 Parganas district of West Bengal. (With Agency inputs)