Eighty-seven days after the body of a woman medic was found at state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, a Kolkata court on Monday framed charges against the prime accused, Sanjay Roy.
The court announced that day-to-day trial in the case would commence from November 11.
Roy has been booked under Section 64 of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (rape), Section 66 (punishment for causing death or resulting in a persistent vegetative state) and 103 (punishment for murder).
"I have done nothing. I have been framed in this rape-murder case. Nobody is listening to me. The government is framing me and threatening me not to open my mouth," Roy told reporters as he was led out of the Sealdah court.
Roy was arrested by the Kolkata Police on August 10, a day after the on-duty woman doctor's body was found inside the seminar room of the RG Kar hospital.
Later, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) took up the investigation into the case on a Calcutta high court order.
Senior West Bengal Congress Adhir Chowdhury said that Roy's claims should be taken seriously and probed.
"Such claims of an accused should not be ignored and call for an investigation. We have been saying that such a crime is not possible by a single person. It's a collective crime. We do not know whether the CBI and the Kolkata Police are in an understanding. We are sceptical," he said.
The role of the police is also required to be probed, said Chowdhury, a former state Congress president.
In its charge sheet submitted last month, the CBI identified Roy as the 'sole prime accused' in the case.
Meanwhile, during the hearing in the corruption case in the same hospital, the central agency told a special CBI court in Alipur in Kolkata that there was a 'deep conspiracy' behind the crime.
Former principal of RG Kar hospital and suspended officer-in-charge of Talah Police Station Abhijit Mondal, who were produced before the court virtually, were remanded to judicial custody till November 18.
The counsel of the arrested duo pleaded for bail citing that they could not be termed as 'accused' when the CBI has not named them in the chargesheet.
The CBI opposed the bail pleas stating that the matter is being investigated and the duo could be involved in a 'larger conspiracy' as well as abetment to crime.
The Calcutta high court on August 23 ordered transfer of the probe into alleged financial irregularities at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital during the tenure of its former principal Sandip Ghosh from a state-constituted Special Investigation Team (SIT) to the CBI. Ghosh was arrested in the case.
Meanwhile, civil society organisations staged a rally from Karunamoyee Crossing to the CBI's office in CGO Complex in Salt Lake demanding that the agency quicken its probe into the RG Kar rape-murder case.
"It's almost three months since the incident happened. What is the CBI doing? There is no clarity in its investigation. We want the CBI to complete its investigation as soon as possible," said Lipika Chakraborty, a school teacher, who participated in the march.
Bharatiya Janata Party state president Sukanta Majumdar said, "The CBI is investigating the case though the police are not cooperating with it. We must be patient," he said.
Senior leader of the ruling Trinamool Congress, Kunal Ghosh, said the Kolkata Police arrested the accused within 24 hours after the crime was discovered.
"The CBI has also mentioned him as the sole prime accused in its charge sheet. So, when an investigation is on, it is not appropriate to comment," said Ghosh, a former Rajya Sabha MP.
Meanwhile, Kinjal Nanda, one of the agitating doctors, said in a video message: "It has been three months and only one person was arrested. Going by the nature of the crime, involvement of more than one person could easily be understood. What is the CBI doing? Why are they not taking the matter seriously?
"Today, the arrested accused claimed that he has been framed. This is a serious allegation which requires to be probed. We want the CBI to speed up their investigation. We want justice for the victim."
In the evening, junior doctors and people from various walks of society organised rallies in different parts of West Bengal demanding the CBI speed up the probe in this case.
