Three IPS officers suspended as Bengal reopens scrutiny of R.G. Kar case

The West Bengal government on Friday, 15 May suspended three senior IPS officers and ordered departmental inquiries against them as it reopened scrutiny into the handling of the R.G. Kar rape and murder case nearly two years after the crime triggered nationwide outrage.

The suspended officers are former Kolkata Police commissioner Vineet Goyal, former deputy commissioner (central) Indira Mukherjee and former deputy commissioner (north) Abhishek Gupta. The government said the suspensions were intended to ensure a fair inquiry without any influence from those under investigation.

Addressing a press conference at Nabanna, chief minister Suvendu Adhikari said the state government was not reopening the rape and murder investigation itself, which remains under the jurisdiction of the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation), but was instead examining the conduct of police officials during the initial handling of the case.

“We are not interfering in the main CBI investigation. We are only taking action on behalf of the state government for mishandling of the situation, offering bribe to the affected family and speaking at press conference despite being not authorised. We are looking into the facts if they were instructed by the former chief minister or any other minister to do such things,” Adhikari said.

The rape and murder of a young doctor at R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in August 2024 had sparked massive protests across Bengal and beyond. Questions were raised at the time over delays in filing the FIR, alleged police inaction, the treatment of the victim’s family and attempts to control the public narrative surrounding the case.

The case was handed over to the CBI within 48 hours following public pressure and court intervention. The CBI later identified the same accused as originally identified and arrested by Kolkata Police, who has since been convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. However, allegations regarding the conduct of certain police officials during the early stages of the investigation never entirely disappeared.

The present state government has argued that accountability for administrative and procedural failures remains separate from the criminal investigation itself.

“As the chief minister, shortly after assuming charge, I sought written reports from the chief secretary and home secretary regarding the R.G. Kar incident and certain subsequent matters. I specifically sought to ascertain how the police officers entrusted with the responsibility had handled the situation,” Adhikari said.

He further alleged that police officers had attempted to offer money to the victim’s family. “An attempt was made to offer what amounts to a bribe. This matter will be thoroughly investigated. The call logs and WhatsApp chats of the officers involved at that time will be scrutinised to identify exactly who they were in contact with,” he said.

The chief minister also questioned the role played by senior officers in communicating with the media during the crisis. Referring to former deputy commissioner Indira Mukherjee, he said she had addressed the press despite allegedly lacking formal authorisation to act as the police spokesperson.

“During the R.G. Kar incident, the manner in which one of the deputy commissioners conducted herself before the media was an insult to Bengal. She was not an official spokesperson for the police, nor had she received any written authorisation to speak,” he said.

The three officers currently hold different positions within the state administration. Goyal is presently serving as director-general of the Intelligence Branch, Mukherjee is attached to the CID as special superintendent, and Gupta is serving with the Eastern Frontier Rifles.

Adhikari also indicated that investigators would examine whether instructions had been issued by ministers or members of the previous administration during the handling of the case. “We will investigate whether there were any directives issued by the chief minister of that era. We will uncover everything,” he said.

The remarks are likely to intensify political tensions in Bengal, where the R.G. Kar case became one of the defining issues focusing public anger against the previous administration. During the Assembly election campaign, BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah, repeatedly promised that the matter would be revisited if the party came to power.

The victim’s mother Ratna Debnath, now the BJP MLA from Panihati, welcomed the government’s decision to reopen scrutiny into police conduct. “What happened to my daughter should never have happened. I thank the new chief minister for reopening this file so swiftly. Justice will be delivered very soon,” she said. “On that night, people of every race, religion and caste united to chant just one slogan: ‘We Want Justice.’ The collective will of the people will not go in vain.”

Incidentally, both she and her husband have in the past been critical of the BJP as well for failing to come to their aid, and earlier media reports of their futile attempts to meet Shah are also readily available in the public domain.

Critics, however, are likely to question whether the state government’s latest actions are driven purely by a commitment to justice or by political considerations in the aftermath of a highly emotive case that reshaped Bengal’s political landscape.

With the criminal investigation long transferred to the CBI and the accused already convicted and sentenced, opposition voices may argue that the administration risks blurring the line between administrative accountability and political retribution, particularly with repeated references to the former chief minister and suggestions of examining political communications.

Legal experts may also caution that reopening institutional controversies surrounding an already adjudicated case could create a perception of selective targeting unless the inquiry remains strictly evidence-based, transparent and free from political messaging.