The Supreme Court is set to resume the hearing of petitions at 10:30 am today related to the rape and murder case of a trainee doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) will be submitting its investigation status report in a sealed envelope, as directed by the Court on August 20. Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud will be reviewing this report. The West Bengal government will also be presenting a status report. The Court had criticized the state government for mishandling the case and had demanded a report on the day a mob vandalised the Hospital premises. The Supreme Court had previously taken suo motu notice of the case.
It was reported on Wednesday evening that the newly appointed principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata was dismissed from her role in response to escalating student protests over the rape and murder of the trainee doctor on the campus.
Meanwhile, the CBI has been questioning former RG Kar hospital principal Sandip Ghosh for the sixth consecutive day. The West Bengal government on Wednesday responded to the protests by removing three senior officials from the institution. According to state Health Secretary NS Nigam, the former principal of RG Kar Hospital who had been reassigned to the Calcutta National Medical College and Hospital, was also dismissed from that role. The three RG Kar Medical College and Hospital officials were reassigned to different state-run health facilities.
In response to ongoing protests nationwide, the Supreme Court has established a national task force to address the broader issue of safety for medical professionals, particularly women. Doctors’ groups, who have been on strike, have pledged to cooperate with this task force and have called for the creation of a central law to address the issue. The task force has been instructed to deliver an interim report within three weeks and a final report within two months.