Was Violence At Kolkata's RG Kar Hospital During Midnight Protest An Attempt To Hide Evidence?

The RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata witnessed violence during a midnight protest march, resulting in injuries to 15 policemen and widespread vandalism.

RG Kar Medical College News: Absolute chaos ruled Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital as violence unfolded late Wednesday night during a protest march that was intended to be "peaceful". The violence saw widespread vandalism on the Hospital premises and outside. At least 15 policemen were also injured in the incident.

The protest intended to press for speedy justice in the Kolkata doctor death case, wherein a junior doctor was raped and murdered on the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital premises. While the doctors organised the midnight protest, common citizens joined them on Wednesday.

Now, allegations are being levelled that the violence was part of a larger conspiracy to destroy evidence in the fourth-floor seminar hall where the crime occurred. Dr Suvrankar Datta from AIIMS Delhi alleged: "A 1000+ mob attacked RG Kar Medical College and attempted to tamper evidence and prevent justice."

The miscreants ran amock in the emergency ward, the hybrid critical care unit, the critical care unit, and the medicine stores. The police outpost outside the hospital and some vehicles were also damaged during the violence.

RG Kar Hospital Vandalism: Witness Accounts

The attack occurred in the midst of the protest as the miscreants alleged to be "outsiders" barged into the RG Kar MCH building. The police have so far arrested nine people for their alleged involvement in the vandalism.

Eyewitnesses reported that the attackers, some dressed in shorts and t-shirts bearing the slogan "We Want Justice", appeared to have come from a nearby night march. The miscreants stormed the hospital premises, breaking through police barricades and wreaking havoc for nearly half an hour. Armed with rods and other weapons, the attackers broke the collapsible gates and vandalised the hospital, leaving a trail of destruction, reported Anandabazar Patrika Online.

The Miscreants even tried to enter the MRI section of the hospital and destroy the equipment. Doctors at RG Kar said some of them also sustained injuries.

According to some witnesses, the assailants might have been locals, while others believe that the violence was intended to demoralise the police that had been providing security to the protestors. The police are also probing whether the attackers deliberately targeted the hospital's emergency department and wanted to move up to the fourth floor.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is probing the RG Kar rape and murder case, has sought details of the midnight violence from the Kolkata Police. It also asked the police if the miscreants had been able to breach the seminar hall. Reacting to social media rumours of the crime scene having been destroyed during the mob violence on Wednesday night, Kolkata police said the seminar hall remains intact.

 

 

Police Team Attacked During RG Kar Protest

The police said that the miscreants pelted them with stones. At this, the police tried to chase them away but were met with more stones. The Deputy Commissioner of Police (North) and the Maniktala Police Station OC were among the 15 injured policemen.

RG Kar 'Renovation' An Excuse To Destroy Evidence?

Wednesday's violence comes amid allegations of the RG Kar MCH authorities trying to "obliterate evidence" relating to the doctor's murder last week by carrying out renovations in the rooms opposite the fourth-floor seminar hall. "The so-called 'renovation' in the Chest Medicine Dept is nothing but a blatant, disgusting attempt to erase the crime scene, all to protect the guilty who are rumoured to be relatives of TMC leaders," the BJP said earlier in an X post.

Meanwhile, Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal, who visited the hospital after the attack, expressed his anger and concern over the incident. He defended the police's handling of the investigation into the rape-murder case, stating that the main suspect had already been arrested and that the police had worked diligently to collect evidence.

Governor CV Ananda Bose Meets RG Kar Protesters

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose met the protesting doctors and students at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College & Hospital on Thursday and assured them of justice. "You will get justice. I have come here to listen to you personally. We will fight it out and we will win. We are with you. I will devote myself to your service," he told the protesters.