Kolkata rape-murder case: CBI probe so far reveals ‘no gangrape’, crime scene altered

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) submitted a status report on the Kolkata doctor rape-murder case before the Supreme Court on Thursday. In its report, the CBI claimed the crime scene was altered, and the West Bengal Police told parents initially that it was a suicide.

The Supreme Court was hearing a suo motu case which pertains to the alleged rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor in the seminar hall of the RG Kar College and Hospital in Kolkata. The heinous crime took place on August 9. Parents claimed they received a call in the morning from the Assistant Superintendent of the Chest Medicine Department informing them that their daughter had died by suicide. They also said they had to wait three hours before authorities allowed them to see their daughter's body. They said they found the body in a half-naked condition.

The CBI took over the probe into the case from the Kolkata Police on August 13. 

What has CBI probe revealed so far?

1. Crime scene altered: Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI in the court, said the crime scene was altered when the CBI entered the investigation on the fifth day. Advocate Kabil Sibal, appearing for the West Bengal government, countered Tushar Mehta's submission, saying everything is videographed and not altered.

2. Parents were initially told it was suicide: Mehta said the police registered the first FIR after cremation at 11:45 pm. “Then they told parents that it was suicide, then death and then friends of the doctor at the hospital insisted on videography, and thus they also suspected something is amiss,” he was quoted by Bar and Bench as saying.

During the hearing on Thursday, the Supreme Court asked the reason for the 14-hour delay in lodging an FIR of the incident. Kapil Sibal said, “...it was the father of the deceased who did not permit the filing of FIR.”

3. No gangrape? Sources told India Today that the CBI probe does not indicate that the trainee doctor was gangraped. The investigation suggested that Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer arrested for the crime, was the only person involved. Police arrested Roy on August 10, a day after the rape and murder, in the RG Kar College and Hospital premises.

The DNA report also reportedly confirmed the involvement of one person. As per the India Today report, the forensic report indicated that the doctor was raped and killed by Roy. However, the CBI is yet to conclude its investigation into the alleged involvement of more people in the case.

What else happened in SC today

During the court hearing on Thursday, there was confusion over when the “unnatural death” (UD) case was registered. The Supreme Court expressed surprise that the “postmortem preceded registration of UD case.”

Justice Pardiwala asked the West Bengal government if they sent the body for postmortem, was it then a case of unnatural death or not? "If it was not unnatural death, then what was the need for a postmortem? When you start doing the postmortem, then it is a case of unnatural death. UD case of 861 of 2024 registered at 23:30 hours, and FIR registered at 23:45. Is this record correct?" the judge asked.

Sibal stated that the unnatural death case was registered at 1:45 pm. He told the court, “The postmortem report and the seizure list all had the UD case report time and number. Even the inquest report has it. This is all mentioned in the case diary.”

The Supreme Court also asked the West Bengal government about the role of Sandip Ghosh, the ex-principal of RG Kar Medical College, after the alleged rape and murder of the 31-year-old doctor in the seminar room.