The punishment meted out to rapists should essentially be of the highest order, and the judgement needs to be taken at the earliest to dissuade men, in particular, from indulging in such acts
As we enter the seventy-eighth year of Indian Independence today, among several of the issues we have to address, molestation and rape of women should be gaining the utmost priority. We still have a bagful of rape cases that are either pending or the rapist convicted, but the event continues in gay abandon.
- Khatwa rape case
- Nirbhaiya rape case
- Shakthi Mill rape case
- Hathras rape case
- Unnao rape case
- The Asaram Bapu, the holy Samaritan, rape cases involving many women and young girls
This case is associated with a 31-year-old lady doctor who planned to rest in the seminar room in the early hours of August 9th after 36 hours of continuous work at the RJ Kar Medical College Hospital, Kolkata. It is the first Private Medical College handed over to the West Bengal government in 1958. The hospital had no restrooms, and the young lady medico found the seminar hall convenient enough to rest for a few hours.
Sadly, it never occurred to her that the white coat that she wore would turn red!
The above, including the title of this write-up incidentally, features in the placard held by the demonstrators! The CCTV is naturally always dysfunctional, and the convict must have verified it in advance. Despite it being identified as a gang rape, only one of the four males who reportedly entered the premises could be arrested for questioning further.
The guy, Sanjay Roy, was a volunteer cop, a temporary assignment allotted by the W/Bengal police. Drawing a meagre salary of ₹12000/- per month, he was a familiar figure in the hospital and hence permitted to move around the hospital premises quite freely. His conspiracy in the crime raised suspicion as his mobile connected to the Bluetooth lying beside the body. Moreover, this guy had four marriages to his name and pornographic material on his phone.
The lady was found entirely disrobed, bleeding from the vagina, both eyes, mouth, lips and face soaked in blood. Injury and scratches were found on her hands and head, and her hair was pulled out. Her spectacles were found broken; her mattress was stained with blood. Several severe sexual assaults, including a broken thyroid cartilage, were identified. The act indicated perverted sexuality by individuals with no moral integrity. Entry into the vagina was unmistakable, with the discovery of almost 150 grams of semen, and hence it was suspected to be a case of gang rape. An attempt to throttle and smother was also detected, and therefore, the endeavour to kill was evident.
While China has registered cases of 85% of violence against the Doctor’s community, India has not been far behind, with 75% of the cases. However, in India, a lot of such connivance is aided by people who are familiar with you or who are under your obligation. For instance, the principal of the RK Kar Medical College, Dr Sandeep Ghosh, was immediately transferred to the National Medical College, Kolkata, as he was a favourite of the West Bengal government. This angered the High Court as well; the Kolkata High Court Judge severely reprimanded Dr Ghosh.
The police called up her parents and reported that their daughter had committed suicide. As the parents rushed to the hospital by 10.53 am, they had to wait for three long hours before they could view her body. This was done with the motive of making the body look presentable with a lot of effort to hide the grievous misdeeds of the rapists and killers.
Madam Mamata Banerjee was not keen on handing over the charge from her police to the CBI, but she finally relented, considering the gravity of the situation. Three lakh medical doctors are on strike, spreading to New Delhi, Chandigarh, Lucknow, Prayag Raj, Patna, and Goa.
The organisation spearheading the fight are a) the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA), b) the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA), Doctors of All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS), and the Indira Gandhi Hospital.
As the initial storm subsided and normalcy was almost restored, a group of men descended on the RJ Kar Medical College & Hospital on the eve of Independence Day, damaging the hospital’s furniture and expensive equipment. The police were caught unaware as they rushed for cover to unknown areas of the hospital. The patients were left unharmed, but all costly equipment, medicine stock and storage were destroyed or turned upside down. The hordes of men who indulged in this exercise were let off with the police in hiding. This happened in a hospital that was the venue of a ghastly rape and murder of an innocent medico!! This can be conceived as a warning from undisclosed but powerful sources that are bound to create more mayhem if left without suitable measures.
In the event of such unprovoked aggression by an unruly, paid mob, the medicos could endanger their lives and live under constant threat of ambush, mainly when they are currently in junior positions and way down in the hierarchy. It requires the might of the police force to be vigilant, particularly in a location that is vulnerable to anticipated attacks.
The punishment meted out to rapists should essentially be of the highest order, and the judgement needs to be taken at the earliest in order to dissuade men, in particular, from indulging in acts that could only momentarily arouse their desire but permanently enslave their minds!
The views expressed by the author are strictly personal.
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.
