Kolkata: Two years after the rape and murder of a woman doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Hospital, the silence observed across West Bengal's government health institutions on Sunday was accompanied by a demand that the investigation itself must not be allowed to go silent.

A two-minute silence was observed at government health institutions across the state to mark the second anniversary of the incident, even as the state Health Department announced a separate inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the crime.

Health Minister Sharadwat Mukhopadhyay had announced the departmental investigation a day earlier, saying the inquiry would seek to establish what happened at the hospital on the night of the incident and examine whether administrative or security lapses contributed to the tragedy.

According to Mukhopadhyay, the department will summon everyone present at the hospital on the night of the incident. Investigating officers will also speak to the victim's teachers and professors as part of the inquiry.

The minister said that if the investigation establishes the need to summon former health minister Mamata Banerjee, the department would take that step.

The inquiry will also examine the specific shortcomings and loopholes in RG Kar Hospital's internal security and administrative mechanisms at the time of the incident, as well as the measures subsequently taken to address those deficiencies.

The final findings of the departmental inquiry will be submitted to the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The announcement comes against the backdrop of continuing concerns among sections of the victim's family and protesters over whether the full circumstances surrounding the crime have been established.

Asfaqullah Naiya, a member of the Abhaya Mancha, which spearheaded protests following the rape and murder of the woman doctor, welcomed Sunday's observance but said silence should not extend to the investigation.

'The state government is observing silence, we are welcoming that. But if the investigation of the RG Kar rape and murder case is also silenced, then it will not be accepted. Till date, we don't know exactly what happened on that night. We want proper justice,' Naiya said.

The case was initially investigated by the Kolkata Police, which arrested civic volunteer Sanjay Roy.

After the Calcutta High Court directed that the investigation be transferred to the CBI, the central agency also named Roy as the sole accused in its chargesheet.

The Sealdah court subsequently found Roy guilty and sentenced him to life imprisonment.

However, the investigation has remained contentious from the outset, with the victim's family expressing dissatisfaction with both the police and CBI probes.

Acting on the family's plea, the Calcutta High Court ordered a fresh investigation and directed the formation of a new CBI Special Investigation Team. The latest judicial scrutiny has added another layer to the case.

Last Thursday, when the CBI submitted a report on the progress of its fresh investigation, a division bench comprising Justice Shampa Sarkar and Justice Tirthankar Ghosh expressed strong dissatisfaction with the progress.

The court observed that the newly constituted SIT appeared to be influenced by the earlier investigation and was losing direction.

 

The developments have kept the RG Kar case firmly in focus two years after the crime, with the latest departmental inquiry now expected to examine institutional lapses while the CBI's fresh investigation remains under judicial scrutiny.