SC takes cognisance of doctor's rape-murder case, hearing on Aug 20

Amid the mounting outrage over the alleged rape and murder of a medic in Kolkata, the Supreme Court has taken suo motu cognisance of the case and will take it up on August 20, even as junior doctors in some states, including West Bengal and Delhi, remained off duty on Sunday disrupting healthcare services.

In Kolkata, Sandip Ghosh, former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, appeared before the CBI on the third consecutive day and was asked to furnish details of the phone calls he made before, and after the incident at the hospital, an officer of the central probe agency said.

Meanwhile, the Kolkata police on Sunday summoned Trinamool Congress MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, hours after he demanded that the CBI interrogate Kolkata police commissioner.

The police have also issued summonses to former Bharatiya Janata Party MP Locket Chatterjee and two renowned doctors for allegedly spreading rumours and disclosing the identity of the victim.

The Supreme Court has taken suo motu cognisance of the incident, amid the nationwide protests.

According to the cause list of August 20 uploaded on the apex court website, a bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra is scheduled to hear on Tuesday a matter titled 'In Re: Alleged rape and murder incident of a trainee doctor in RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata and related issue'.

Healthcare services remained affected across West Bengal for the tenth consecutive day as agitating junior doctors at state-run hospitals continued their cease-work demanding justice for the victim.

As the outpatient departments (OPDs) at government hospitals are closed on Sundays, the rush was less even as senior doctors were attending the emergency department to provide treatment to the visiting patients.

"We are not for affecting healthcare services. We can understand the problems faced by the patients but our protest is very relevant in this context when an on-duty doctor was raped and murdered...We will continue with our protest till our sister gets justice and the government arranges total security for us," an agitating doctor told PTI.

In the national capital, the resident doctors' strike entered its seventh day over the incident.

In Goa, medical services at the state-run Goa Medical College and Hospital in Panaji remained affected for the third consecutive day on Sunday, with resident doctors resolving against withdrawing the indefinite strike, which began Friday, till the Calcutta High Court delivers verdict in the rape-murder case.

Earlier in the day, the Indian Medical Association announced that it has ended its 24-hour strike that started on Saturday.

Ghosh, the former principal of the hospital, who was grilled by CBI officers for over 13 hours on Saturday, reached the agency's office at CGO Complex in Salt Lake at 11 am on Sunday.

"We have a list of questions for him," the Central Bureau of Investigation officer told PTI.

Ghosh was asked to specify his role after getting the news of the death of the doctor, who he had contacted and why he made the parents wait for nearly three hours, he said.

The ex-principal was also questioned who had ordered the renovation of the rooms near the seminar hall at the emergency building of the hospital after the incident.

The Kolkata police on Sunday summoned TMC MP Roy, who called upon the CBI to act fairly and demanded the custodial interrogation of former principal of the medical establishment and the police commissioner to know "who and why floated the suicide story".

Roy was asked to appear before officers of the Kolkata Police at its headquarters in Lalbazar at 4 pm on Sunday for allegedly posting wrong information regarding the incident, a police source said.

The police also issued summonses to former BJP MP Locket Chatterjee and two renowned doctors -- Dr Kunal Sarkar and Dr Subarna Goswami -- for allegedly spreading rumours and disclosing the identity of the woman doctor who was raped and murdered at the hospital, an officer said.

The police have also issued summonses to 57 others for spreading wrong information about the incident, he said.

Dr Sarkar and Dr Goswami were issued summonses to appear before officers of the Kolkata Police at its headquarters in Lalbazar at 3 pm on Sunday, he added.

When contacted, renowned cardiologist Dr Sarkar said he has received the summons from the police.

"...But at the moment, I am out of town and have informed the Kolkata Police about that. I do not know why they have called me, but it seems that some of my comments on social media have elicited certain reactions nationally and internationally... maybe because of that," Sarkar told PTI.

However, Dr Goswami, Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Purba Bardhaman district, said that he is yet to receive the summons.

Chatterjee, the former BJP MP of Hooghly constituency, said she has not received any summons yet.

Meanwhile, supporters of arch-rivals East Bengal and Mohun Bagan gathered near the Salt Lake stadium, the venue of the cancelled Kolkata Derby, on Sunday evening in a rare show of camaraderie to protest the medic's rape-murder incident.

Over a hundred supporters of the two clubs initially gathered outside the stadium with placards and posters even as a Durand Cup match between the two most-followed football clubs of the country was cancelled with police citing concerns over the law and order situation.

Supporters of the two clubs held each other's flags and raised slogans demanding justice for the victim, with a huge contingent of the police keeping a vigil on the situation. Supporters of the Mohammedan SC, another major football club, also joined the protests a while later.

The Union Home Ministry has asked all state police forces to provide it situation reports every two hours in the wake of protests by doctors, nursing staff and others over the Kolkata incident.

In a communication to the state police forces, the home ministry said that the law and order situation of all states should be monitored in view of the protests.

"Henceforth, a continuous two-hourly law and order situation report in this regard may kindly be sent to the MHA control room (New Delhi) by Fax/ Email/ WhatsApp from 1600 hours today," the communication sent on Friday said.

Meanwhile, the West Bengal government has announced a slew of measures to ensure the safety of women in workplaces, particularly at state-run hospitals, where they have to work on night shifts, too, including designated retiring rooms and CCTV-monitored 'safe zones'.

Chief advisor to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Alapan Bandyopadhyay, announced the measures during a press meet in Kolkata on Saturday, amid continuing protests by doctors across the state over the medic's rape-murder.

Expressing anguish over the incident, over 70 Padma awardee doctors have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding quick enactment of a special law to deal with violence against healthcare personnel and implementation of improved safety protocols in medical facilities.

The renowned doctors like Ashok Vaid, Harsh Mahajan, Anoop Misra, A K Grover, Alka Kriplani and Mohsin Wali have sought PM Modi's "immediate and personal intervention" to address the "alarming" situation and suggested that the Centre bring an ordinance immediately to ensure the "harshest possible punishment" to those who indulge in violence against healthcare workers, whether verbal or physical.

On August 9, the body of the postgraduate trainee doctor was found in the seminar hall of the state-run hospital in Kolkata. A civic volunteer was arrested in connection with the crime the next day. Later, the Calcutta High Court handed over the case to the CBI.