India’s highest court expressed severe disapproval on Tuesday toward West Bengal’s authorities for their mismanagement of a case involving the rape and murder of a junior doctor in a government-run hospital in Kolkata, the state’s capital. The court regarded the crime as an act that shook the country’s moral sensibility and caused nationwide protests from doctors.
The mutilated body of the 31-year-old intern was discovered on the 9th of August near a remote seminar room at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital. She had completed a shift of 36 hours and sought rest in the facility as there was no designated resting space for medical staff.
Sanjoy Roy, a hospital voluntary worker associated with the police welfare cell in Kolkata, was detained regarding the crime. However, thousands of doctors and local residents of Kolkata protested against perceived favouritism on the city police’s part, and consequently, the state high court reassigned the case to the national Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) the previous weekend.
The Chief Justice of India, D Y Chandrachud, commented on the delicate state of the medical profession in India, noting that women doctors in particular are often victims of violence. He further stated that existing laws do not effectively secure institutional safety standards for healthcare workers.
The court subsequently mandated the formation of a national task force, consisting of nine of India’s foremost medical experts. They were given the task to prepare an initial report in three weeks, suggesting safety procedures for doctors at their workplaces, with final recommendations due two months later.
The Supreme Court further ordered the CBI to present its findings regarding the case in court by Thursday. The hospital authorities were scolded for their lateness in reporting the rape and murder. Initially, they tried to pass the doctor’s death off as suicide and push for her early cremation.
The court also denounced Kolkata’s police for their failure to manage a crowd equipped with iron rods and sticks that stormed the Kar hospital two days post the murder. This act seemed to have been set to interrupt the protesting doctors and perhaps destroy crime scene evidence.
The mob, following the hospital’s wreckage, assaulted women engaging in a “Reclaim the Night” protest in Kolkata, causing them to scatter. The court pointed out that the police had fled or were not dispatched by the Trinamool Congress state government to handle the chaos.
In the original text, it is expressed that the head judge voiced his disquiet regarding the posting of photographs and names of victims on digital platforms, in spite of stringent regulations that forbid such actions and could potentially incur a two-year stint in prison. One such instance has been cited which involved a member of Parliament from TMC, Rachana Banerjee, who deleted the contentious post following a legal complaint lodged against her in the supreme court.
Furthermore, the supreme court has shown worry over the sub-par working environment provided to the medical professionals, particularly in government-owned healthcare facilities. This alarming situation encompasses the unavailability of allocated relaxation rooms after demanding daily routines, non-operational CCTV installations and a general deficiency in security protocols. These security procedures also extend to the checking of visitors and patients for any armaments, which have been reportedly brandished in the past to intimidate doctors into offering preferential care.