Unmasking the Tragedy in Kolkata

On the night of 9th August 2024, a 31-year-old postgraduate doctor was found dead while on duty in the seminar hall of her college & hospital, R.G Kar Medical College, Kolkata, West Bengal. Within hours, all hell broke loose, as an autopsy confirmed that the victim had been gang raped, with multiple fractures and 14 internal wounds. 

Illustration by The Geostrata

The question which people immediately jumped to ask was, why was the good doctor brutalised? Was it a random act of a manic sex predator, or was there more to it than what meets the eye?

There have been allegations of many students and college staffers who are members of the ruling party, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) being involved, thus the statement of the opposition that the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is implicit and somehow explicitly a part of it.

The state, prior to the intervention of the High Court, made desperate attempts at a cover-up first by starting construction and renovation work in the seminar room where the murder took place, and then by telling the parents of the victim that it was suicide. 

As the case further unraveled, Ms. Banerjee, who in her capacity as the Health Minister readily agreed to handover the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), India's premier agency, but within hours took a U-turn from her stand.

Within 48 hours, a person was arrested, but the rumours were out that all of this was mere scapegoating, whilst the state patted their backs for solving the case. Finally, after a periodic lambast from the Calcutta High Court, the case was finally transferred to the CBI.

Though the matter is still under sub judice, the lackadaisical attitude of the West Bengal government and its representatives needs to be talked about. The principal Dr. Sandip Ghosh was transferred to another medical college.

As on date, he has been detained for questioning by the CBI along with Dr. Arunava Dutta Chowdhury, the head of the chest department of which the victim was a student and practitioner. At the time of this writing, Dr. Ghosh was being questioned for the 3rd straight day by the CBI.

There has been a lot said about organ trafficking being carried out in which the now departed principal was involved. Apart from that, there have also been allegations of a medical education and touting racket that was being organised and being run through the college campus. These aforementioned allegations are still under investigation by the agencies. 

But will the agencies truly be able to investigate this? And there are reasons to have this doubt because, firstly, the crime scene, prima facie has been compromised with evidence being destroyed.

Apart from that, a 7,000 size mob also entered the college campus while going on a pillaging and rampaging spree, further dilapidating any evidence that may have existed.

In addition to this, Bengal has had a history of being too nice to its guests and visitors as was seen by the violence and stone pelting perpetrated against CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials when they went to Sandeshkhali, to investigate the ration scam. 

Previously, another such sexual harassment case involving members of the ruling dispensation has been handed over to the CBI, when the Sandeshkhali scandal broke out where tribal women protested against Sheikh Shahjahan, accusing him of hooliganism and murder of political opponents and alleged rape of tribal women.

The reactions and counteractions to the state's failure to first investigate and open cases involving its ministers and their sons and aides have only strengthened the resolve of the people and civil society as well as that of the medical community in protesting against the Mamata Banerjee government.

The responses have been beyond what the government had initially imagined, with even the “subservient” lap-dogs of TMC asking for Ms. Banerjee to resign. More so because, Ms. Banerjee, her party leaders and goons are not habitual to large scale protests against such recurring acts. 

On the eve of Independence Day, at 14th August, 11.55 PM, a protest march named after the famous 1977 march “Reclaim the Night” was organised, which broke quite a few numerical records with claims of over 1 lakh people and more having turned out. The highlight of these protests were a group of grandmothers carrying their granddaughters in their laps, holding candles demanding for a future that is safe enough for their daughters and granddaughters. 

However, this too was sabotaged by the government, as per initial reports and allegations by sponsoring a mob of 7,000 goons and unruly mobsters, who entered the R.G Kar Medical College, in the night of 15th August, causing absolute carnage.

This also means that whatever was left of the “crime scene”, is absolutely gone, with the CCTV footage having already been misplaced to a technical error. Using this party sponsored mob as a reason, Kolkata Commissioner of Police, IPS Vineet Goyal, ordered for the implementation of Section 163 of the BNSS (previously Section 144, of Criminal Procedure Code,1973) to suppress and quell democratic dissent.

Various stakeholders including advocates of the Calcutta High Court led democratic protests outside the court premises filing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) demanding the immediate suspension of Kolkata Police Commissioner IPS Vineet Goyal, for scuttling the investigation. His past track record of the Park Street Rape Case too has been highlighted before the court. 

All competent stakeholders like the Indian Medical Association (IMA) and other student groups called for a bandh in Calcutta and other parts of India, and the Chief Minister too took to the streets.

Ms. Banerjee ironically called and led a protest march on 17th, August, where protestors included the likes of her party MPs (Members of Parliament), Mahua Moitra, Sayontika Ghosh, among others.

In fact, Ms. Banerjee has been a proclaimed fender when it comes to talking about these rape victims from calling them “characterless” to “lemons who have been totally squeezed”. 

The irony of the state government was questioned by many as boards and hoardings were out in display questioning other acts of rape, blaming “Vam & Ram” (the Left Front and the BJP, the principal opposition parties), for this horrendous incident. Meanwhile, this case too is being made to fit the bill of blaming the central agencies, in the process completely removing the blame of the state and its defunct police. 

In fact, the internal descent which came from the ruling party of Ms. Banerjee too was quickly suppressed as spokespersons who questioned the role of the government were removed from their positions.

As is now being hinted that this rape was not merely perpetrated by a group of sexual predators, but was done to create an example out of the victim who had some incriminating evidence against higher authorities of committing organ trafficking and prostitution rackets, itself, aggravates the whole issue. 

However, as this case unravels, the blame squarely lies with the West Bengal government and its Chief Minister. The parents of the victim too have blamed Ms. Banerjee for trying to scuttle the investigation and suppress the protests being carried out. The Honorable Supreme Court took a suo moto cognizance, agreeing to hear the matter on 20th of August. 

From the Park Street case to the Sandeshkhali violence and now the R.G Kar Medical College rape and murder, all showcase the pitiable state of affairs and the failure of governance in what can be termed as “Wild-West” Bengal. A state that historically was imbibed with the teachings of women freedom fighters like Rani Rashmoni and Nanibala Devi, today is no more the Sonar Bangla which Rabindranath Tagore envisaged. 

We have contributed to this failure. From not coming out in massive numbers to condemn the very first incident that was Park Street to staying absolutely silent at the plight of the tribal women of Sandeshkhali, the blame lays down with us.

Equally to be blamed are our policy makers like the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, who took three days to tweet about this incident, but has been quick to highlight Manipur, making this purely about political narratives. 

In light of this horrendous incident, with a potential cover-up and loss of key evidence, the probe has hit a roadblock, with justice being pushed to the backseat. In fact, the seriousness of this incident gets highlighted by the fact that the two most prominent football clubs of West Bengal, Mohun Bagan and East Bengal football clubs canceled their match and held a joint protest against failure of law and order which too was brutally lathi charged upon.

The state has failed and its machinery now is purely in an image-conserving move for the Chief Minister. Historically, it was Bengal that taught revolution to the people of India with protest against the British. Today, the same revolutionary Bengali society has decided to democratically be up in arms against a failed Chief Minister, to protect its daughters. Only time will tell, whether the victim (ABHAYA), will get justice or will she be another statistic, brutalised and forgotten by our dwindling collective memory. 

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BY KAUSHAL SINGH

CENTRE FOR LAW AND POLITICS

TEAM GEOSTRATA

info@thegeostrata.com