For more than forty days, Kolkata has been in the grip of demonstrations and rallies. Not a day goes by without citizens of all ages and from all walks of life gathering in different places in the capital of West Bengal. Doctors, students, pensioners, artists, civil servants, housewives, tea sellers – all are demanding justice. The extremely brutal rape and murder of a 31-year-old nurse on 9 August at the RG Kar public hospital in Kolkata, where she worked, plunged the city into a state of shock.
At the entrance to the hospital complex, the medical interns have set up an altar in honour of their murdered colleague, where Themis, the Greek goddess of justice, sits, surrounded by candles and jasmine flowers, blindfolded. The so-called “RG Kar” affair It once again highlights violence against women, but also reveals serious failings on the part of hospital authorities and the police.
“A wall of resistance”
From the first hours after the tragedy, the young woman’s colleagues had to fight to ensure that the investigation was carried out in a transparent manner. “As soon as we learned what had happened, we rushed to the scene to ensure that the hospital administration was held accountable and handled the matter appropriately.”says Anisha Basu, a 24-year-old intern. “We ran into a wall of resistance”complaint. “We had to oppose the police who wanted to move the body in the absence of a magistrate”adds her colleague Riya Bera. “Many people had access to the crime scene, there was no security; on the night of 14-15 August, while demonstrations were taking place, a group broke into the hospital grounds and the premises were vandalised”continues Anisha Basu.
The victim’s parents accuse the hospital of initially wanting to make their daughter’s death look like suicide. “The police insisted that his body be cremated, we were under so much pressure that we did not have time to perform the funeral rituals”laments his mother, while the couple wanted a second opinion on the autopsy report, which is now impossible. “All the evidence has been falsified. Many criminal acts were committed to cover up my daughter’s murder”the heartbroken mother believes.
You have 64.62% left to read this article. The rest is reserved for subscribers.
