Kolkata Doctor Death: Mamata Stages Protest, Top Cop Cites ‘Assessment Failure’ Over Mob Attack — Updates

RG Kar Doctor Death: Mamata Banerjee led a protest rally over the rape-murder of the Kolkata doctor last week. She also claimed that some "quarters are peddling lies to mislead people".

RG Kar Doctor Death: As the hue and cry over the rape and murder of the junior doctor at Kolkata's state-run hospital continues, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee — who has faced massive backlash over delayed probe and justice — led a protest rally in the Bengal capital on Friday, demanding capital punishment for those involved in the barbaric act and justice for the 31-year-old victim.

Meanwhile, Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Kumar Goyal, held a press conference to address the rumours floating around the case and clarified that the Kolkata Police did not try to shield anyone. "We tried to be as transparent as possible in our probe," he said.

Responding to the allegations that the police tried to suppress the matter by calling it a case of suicide, Goyal said: "Registering unnatural death case doesn't mean police wanted to label the crime as suicide."

Earlier today, the Calcutta High Court also rapped the Bengal government over the recent incident of vandalism at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, where the doctor was found dead.

Here's what has happened so far:

• Mamata Banerjee led a protest rally in Kolkata along with several women volunteers, demanding justice for the victim and capital punishment for the accused.

• While BJP and other opposition parties in Bengal have been demanding Banerjee's resignation, accusing her government of mishandling the case and destroying evidence to protect someone, the Bengal CM, in turn, hit out at them saying "Nexus of Left, BJP should be exposed". "We want the truth to come out, but some quarters peddling lies to mislead people" she alleged.
  
  Lashing out at the BJP and CPI (M) at the rally, Mamata Banerjee claimed that the vandalism was carried out by the opposition parties in the state. 
  
  


• "I know that CPM and BJP vandalised RG Kar Medical College and Hospital...They went there at 12-1 am in the night, the video shows that CPM took the DYFI flag and BJP took the national flag. They have misused the national flag, they should be punished. How many teams did BJP and CPM send when the incident happened in Manipur? How many teams were sent to Hathras, Unnao?... CPM and BJP should not threaten me, we have not come without contesting elections," she said. 

• As news about her protest came, the Bengal CM received backlash on social media, following which Trinamool Congress MP Derek O'Brien listed the reasons behind her participation in the protest. He also said that CBI taking over the case shouldn't lead it to be "quietly buried."

• A junior doctor who was protesting at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital stated the demands on behalf of the other doctors. She stated: " Our primary demand is the arrest of the culprits with proper evidence with an official press release confirming the same from the CBI."
  
  The protesting doctors also seek a written apology and order of resigation of higher authorities including former and current Principal of RG Kar, MSVP, Dean of Students Affairs, HOD of the Chest Medicine Department and the Assistant Super Support on Duty of the incident.
  
  "They should be barred from holding any administrative or authoritative positions in any institution for the remaining duration of their services," she said.
  
  


• Besides this, the protesting doctors also demanded adequate financial compensation by the government immediately, implementation of workplace security measures, security guards both male and female, and strict action against defamation of RG Kar MCH students on social media among others.
  
  
  
  


• Meanwhile, Bengal Police Commissioner Vineet Kumar Goyal asked people to have faith in the CBI and assured that the police "tried to do everything possible in the very little time we had".
  
  


• The Bengal top cop clarified that registering the case as unnatural death doesn't mean the police wanted to "label the crime as suicide".
  
  "That’s a standard practice followed by all investigation agencies in the country. We went by the book. There was no attempt to call the crime a ‘suicide’ as being erroneously reported from certain quarters. The police never called it a ‘suicide’," he said.
  
  


•  He also addressed the "rumours" floating around regarding the case and calirifed: "Far too many rumours which have no basis, and based on them, a lot of so-called experts are creating narratives...It is wrong that we have informed the victim's family that she committed suicide. It is wrong that 150 grams of semen was found in her body."
  
  


• Raising concern over the "rumour-mongering" Goyal assured that the police are cooperating with the CBI with anything they need and said "there is no doubts as far as transparency is concerned".
  
  "I dont see why it is being spread that we wanted to hush up the matter and finish it as... Videography was done and all evidence was collected in the presence of family and friends... A three-member team conducted the postmortem and it is on video... CBI has access to the postmortem video... There is no doubt as far as transparency is concerned," Goyal said.

• Speaking about the vandalism at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, which is being viewed as a means to destory and tamper evidence, Goyal said that the police has already around 25 people who were allegedly part of the mob that attacked the medical facility where the crime occurred.
  
  "We had posted photographs and videos of the people on our Facebook page... We would like to request you circulate it widely and anyone can give us any information about any person irrespective of their political affiliations... Action will be taken against the accused. We have arrested around 25 people and photographs of 9 people have been matched," the Police Commissioner said.
  
  


• He asserted that the vandals couldn’t reach the scene of the crime, the seminar hall on the fourth floor of the building that housed the emergency department, where the body of the murdered medic was found.
  
  


• Goyal stressed that the police would arrest all those who were involved in the vandalism. "Let there be no doubts as far as this is concerned," he added.

• The Police Commissioner also acknowledged that the vandalisation was a result of "failure of assessment". He said that there was no intelligence, hinting such an incident would occur. 
  
  


• "This entire protest was supposed to have been a very peaceful protest. That is my understanding... There was no such intelligence... We also make an assessment on the basis of whatever is available... We deploy our resources and try to see that law and order is maintained. So the assessment failure is not the first time it has happened, whether in Kolkata or elsewhere. They do happen at times...There is adequate security...And we are committed to it," he stated.
  
  
  
  


• Rapping the Bengal government over the vandalism at RG Kar MCH, Calcutta High Court said on Friday that the incident was an "absolute failure of state machinery". It also called the administration's way of handling the case a "sorry state of affairs".
  
  


• In view of the harrowing incident, the Indian Medical Association announced that it would withdraw services by practiioners of modern medicine for 24 hours across the nation, starting from August 17 to August 18. The medical body said that only essential services would remain operational and doctors would only attend emrgency cases. OPDs will remain closed and elective surgeries postponed.
  
  


• A 12-hour Bengal 'bandh' was organised by the Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist) on Friday.


• The Resident Doctors' Associations in Delhi had also announced a joint protest march on August 16. The march will commence at 2 PM from Nirmal Bhavan, RDA stated in its press release.


• On August 15, FORDA had also announced that it would resume it nationwide strike that it had called off earlier, following a meeting with Union Health Minister JP Nadda. The decision was a result of the vandalism at RG Kar MCH and the failure of the Union Ministry and state government to keep up their promises.