Bengal: CBI team visits RG Kar Hospital to have a relook at rape-murder case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday intensified its renewed probe into the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, with a six-member team visiting the institution as part of a fresh investigation ordered by the Calcutta High Court.

The team, led by an officer of joint director rank, arrived at the hospital to examine the circumstances surrounding the crime and the allegations that evidence was destroyed in its aftermath.

According to officials, the investigators are scheduled to meet the hospital's principal, medical superintendent, vice-principal and other key functionaries. The team is also expected to inspect the seminar hall and other locations linked to the crime scene.

"The officers will interact with hospital authorities and revisit the site where the incident took place as part of the fresh investigation," an official said.

The renewed probe stems from a Calcutta High Court order directing the CBI to re-examine allegations of evidence tampering and to investigate concerns raised by the victim's family regarding the handling of the case.

The court has asked the agency to reconstruct the sequence of events from the time the young doctor had dinner on the night of 8 August 2024, until her cremation the following evening. The agency has been granted the authority to question anyone it considers relevant to the investigation.

The brutal rape and murder of the trainee doctor inside the state-run hospital on 9 August 2024, sparked nationwide outrage, triggering months of protests by doctors, medical students and civil society groups demanding justice and accountability.

The case took another turn last week when newly appointed West Bengal health minister Sharadwat Mukherjee revealed that the state government had reopened files related to the incident. Mukherjee also held a nearly 90-minute meeting with the victim's parents, who have repeatedly alleged lapses in the investigation and attempts to suppress crucial evidence.

The fresh CBI inquiry comes even after civic volunteer Sanjay Roy was sentenced to life imprisonment on 20 January 2025, for his role in the crime. The victim's family and several activists, however, have continued to press for a wider investigation, arguing that unanswered questions remain about the events surrounding the murder and the alleged destruction of evidence.

With the high court setting 25 June as the next date of hearing, the spotlight is once again firmly on RG Kar Medical College, as investigators attempt to determine whether crucial facts were concealed in one of the most shocking crimes to rock West Bengal in recent years.

With PTI inputs