Body of woman trainee doctor found in city hospital, family alleges rape

PTI, Kolkata, Aug 9, 2024 :  The semi-nude body of a woman post-graduate trainee (PGT) doctor was found inside the seminar hall of a government-run hospital in Kolkata on Friday, the police said.

The deceased, a second-year student of the chest medicine department, was on duty on Thursday night. The body bore injury marks.

Her father alleged that she was raped and murdered inside RG Kar Medical College and Hospital and efforts are on to hide the truth.

A senior police officer said, “Her body was found in the seminar hall at the Emergency building by fellow students. We are talking to doctors, nurses, and others who were on duty with her last night. The matter is being investigated.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, sources said, telephoned the parents of the woman and assured them of appropriate action against the culprits.

Her father said, “I am quite sure that my daughter was raped before she was murdered. The injury marks on her body are evident. She was found semi-naked. Efforts are on to hide the truth. I do not understand why they (hospital authorities) are delaying the investigation.

The body was sent for post-mortem examination.

A doctor of the hospital, who did not want to be named, said, “She also had dinner with her juniors at around 2 AM. She then went to the seminar room since there is no separate on-call room to take some rest. In the morning, we found her body there.

The police officer said, “The body bore scratch marks on the cheeks, around her nose, lips, in between eyebrows, and the neck. The marks reveal that there was some struggle.

He said that the post-mortem examination report would help the police understand whether she was sexually assaulted and how she was killed.

Five people, who were on duty with her on Thursday night, are being interrogated.

Health Secretary NS Nigam and Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal visited the hospital and held a meeting with senior officials of the medical establishment.

The hospital authorities constituted a three-member panel to probe into the death of the doctor.

PGT doctors at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital have stopped working in all departments, except the Emergency ward, demanding immediate arrest of the culprits.

Several student associations took out a rally demanding a quick probe into the death of the woman PGT.

A number of opposition BJP leaders, including MLA Agnimitra Paul, also visited the hospital and demanded an independent investigation under a magistrate.

Ruling Trinamool Congress leader Dr Santanu Sen told reporters: “We want a fair, transparent and thorough probe into the entire incident.

The Mamata Banerjee administration has always been in favour of safety and security of women, said Sen, former national president of the Indian Medical Association.

An investigation has already begun, the former Rajya Sabha said.

A senior member of the Association of Health Service Doctors, Dr Manas Gumta, alleged that there were attempts to “suppress” the matter.

“This is unprecedented and never happened in Bengal. The most unfortunate thing is that now there are attempts to suppress fact and make it look like a case of suicide. The post-mortem examination should be conducted on camera by an expert not associated with the hospital,” Gumta said.

The former secretary of the Association demanded the removal of the Principal of the medical college.