Kolkata Police on Thursday arrested nine people after a group of nearly 40–50 miscreants—under the garb of protests—stormed the premises of state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital late on Wednesday night and vandalised the portions of the medical facility, where the semi-naked body of a 32-year-old trainee doctor was found last week.
Kolkata Police, however, said the crime scene of the alleged brutal rape and murder case was intact.
The incident took place amid midnight protests by women under the ‘Reclaim the Night‘ campaign against the brutal murder of the lady doctor at the state-run hospital. Kolkata Police fired tear gas and resorted to lathi-charge to disperse the mob.
Some police officers were injured in the violence. A police vehicle and a few two-wheelers were also damaged in the incident.
The arrests came within hours of Trinamool Congress’s Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek Banerjee demanding action within 24 hours. “The hooliganism and vandalism at RG Kar tonight have exceeded all acceptable limits. As a public representative, I just spoke with @CPKolkata [Kolkata Commissioner of Police], urging him to ensure that every individual responsible for today’s violence is identified, held accountable, and made to face the law within the next 24 hours, regardless of their political affiliations,” Abhishek Banerjee said in a post on X.
Kolkata RG Kar Hospital Vandalised: Latest Developments
- West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose visited RG Kar Medical College and Hospital to take stock of the situation following vandalism by unidentified miscreants. He spoke to the agitating junior doctors and inspected the Emergency Department, where vandalism took place the previous night.
- West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose has opened ‘Abhaya Home’ where doctors who are feeling insecure could stay “until they get back the confidence to move around freely in West Bengal”. The governor’s office has also opened an ‘Abhaya Portal’ where any doctor or common people who are feeling distressed could call and seek assistance.
- Kolkata Police have arrested 9 people in connection with the violence inside the RG Kar Medical College. Police have also recovered several CCTV footage, and they are being examined thoroughly, India Today reported, citing sources.
- Kolkata Police clarified that the crime scene of the alleged brutal rape and murder of the woman doctor at the RG Kar Medical College had not been disturbed during the mob vandalism. In a post on ‘X’, the Kolkata Police said, “The crime scene is the seminar room and it has not been touched. Don’t spread unverified news. We will initiate legal action for spreading rumours.”
- The Indian Medical Association (IMA) slammed the vandalism at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and said the authorities have once again failed to maintain law and order when the CBI investigation into the alleged rape-murder case is underway. The IMA further said the mob attack was a bid to target young medical students protesting against the murder of the trainee doctor.
- Suhrita Pal, the newly appointed principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, said she doesn’t know anything about the people who initiated vandalism at the hospital. “If you know anything, please tell me. I don’t know anything about them,” she added.
- The mob deliberately vandalized the area, an MBBS final-year student told ANI. “When we were getting ready to start the rally, a huge mob came. We requested them to continue their rally and not try to interfere here as there are female protestors. Then the mob tried to get into our protest, shockingly there used to be a lot of police when protests used to happen, but when the mob arrived, there were only a few police personnel present at the spot,’ he said.
- The CBI team visited the victim’s residence on Thursday. The agency will also visit RG Kar Hospital later in the day to check if the area that they had sealed was affected due to the vandalism.
- Nurses of the RG Kar Medical College today protested against the vandalism hours after a group of 40-50 miscreants ransacked a part of the medical establishment where the woman doctor was found dead last week. Nurses demanded proper security on the premises. “Such hooliganism inside a hospital is unacceptable,” one of the protesting nurses said.
- The incident has triggered a war of words between the BJP and the ruling TMC. The BJP has demanded the resignation of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
- According to Kolkata police, a group of 40-50 people masquerading as protestors entered the hospital premises, vandalized property, and pelted the police personnel present with stones. They were carrying sticks, bricks and rods.
- The police resorted to lathi-charge and also fired tear gas shells to disperse the crowd.