Trinamool Congress MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray announced on Tuesday that he plans to join the ongoing protest against the rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on Wednesday.
“Tomorrow, I will stand with the protesters, especially because, like millions of Bengali families, I have a daughter and a little granddaughter. We must rise to this occasion,” the senior TMC MP shared on X (formerly Twitter).
Ray expressed his anger at the growing violence against women, stating, “Enough of cruelty against women. Let’s resist together. Come what may.”
The horrific crime came to light on the morning of August 9 when the body of the second-year postgraduate student was discovered in a seminar hall on the third floor of the hospital’s chest department. The investigation revealed she had been raped and murdered, with multiple lacerations and wounds found on her body.
The primary suspect, Sanjoy Roy, has been arrested, but the police have not ruled out the involvement of others. On Tuesday, the Calcutta High Court transferred the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The incident has triggered widespread outrage and protests across the medical community. Resident doctors’ associations launched a nationwide strike in response to the crime. Although the Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA) called off their strike after Union Health Minister JP Nadda met their demands, other groups, including the Federation of All India Medical Associations (FAIMA), have vowed to continue their protest until a central law to protect medical personnel is enacted.
Ray expressed dissatisfaction with the decision to hand the investigation over to the CBI, alleging that there might be efforts to protect the accused. “Gangrape and merciless murder happened in RG Kar Hospital. Who are they? Now CBI to investigate. Well. I’ve no faith in CBI. They are nincompoop. Yet the truth is to be unraveled,” he wrote in a separate post.
The post-mortem report of the trainee doctor, conducted at the same hospital, confirmed the brutality of the attack. The autopsy revealed that the victim had been tortured and sexually assaulted before being strangled. The report noted severe injuries to her thyroid cartilage and private parts, along with multiple injuries to her abdomen, mouth, fingers, shoulders, and legs. The attack likely occurred between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. on August 9.
