Fast Probe, Punish Culprits: PM Modi Reminds State Amid Kolkata Doctor Brutal Rape-Murder

New Delhi: In his Independence Day speech, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed the critical need for rapid investigations and prompt justice in cases of crimes against women. His remarks come in the wake of widespread protests following the rape and murder of a doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. The Prime Minister also urged state governments to take serious measures to enhance women's safety and ensure that justice serves as a strong deterrent against such heinous acts. 

“...I would like to express my pain once again, from the Red Fort today. As a society, we will have to think seriously about the atrocities against women that are happening - there is outrage against this in the country. I can feel this outrage. The country, society, and State Governments will have to take this seriously. Speedy investigation of crimes against women, those executing these monstrous deeds be awarded strict punishment at the earliest - this is important to instil confidence in society. I would also like to say that when rapes and incidents of atrocities on women occur, it is widely discussed. But when a person of such monstrous tendency is punished, it is not seen in news, but restricted to a corner. It is the need of the hour, that extensive discussion on those receiving punishment be held so that those committing this sin understand that this leads to hanging. I think it is very important to instil this fear”, said PM Modi. 

Kolkata Doctor Rape-Murder

Unidentified miscreants entered the premises of state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital here shortly after midnight on Thursday and vandalised portions of the medical facility, where the body of a woman doctor was found last week, police said. The incident took place amid midnight protests by women against the horrific rape-murder of the doctor at the hospital.

According to the police, a group of nearly 40 people, allegedly disguised as protestors, entered the hospital premises, vandalised property and pelted stones at police personnel prompting them to fire teargas to disperse the mob. A police vehicle and a few two-wheelers at the spot were also damaged in the incident, they said.

Some police officers were injured in the violence, an officer said. “We have an adequate number of personnel posted outside the hospital, and they have been instructed to tackle the situation accordingly,” a senior officer of Kolkata Police told PTI.

Spurred by the 'Reclaim the Night' campaign, which gained momentum through social media, the protests began at 11.55 pm, aligning with Independence Day celebrations, and spread across key areas in both small towns and big cities, including several landmarks in Kolkata.

Later, Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal reached the spot at around 2 am. Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress general secretary and MP Abhishek Banerjee said that he spoke to Goyal and urged him to "ensure that every individual responsible for today’s violence is identified, held accountable, and made to face the law within the next 24 hours, regardless of their political affiliations".

"The hooliganism and vandalism at RG Kar tonight have exceeded all acceptable limits. As a public representative, I just spoke with CPKolkata," he said in a post on X.

"The demands of the protesting doctors are fair and justified. This is the minimum they should expect from the government. Their safety and security must be prioritised," Banerjee said.

BJP leader and leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari alleged that the vandalism was carried out by "TMC goons" sent by party supremo Mamata Banerjee.

"Mamata Banerjee has sent her TMC goons to the apolitical Protest Rally near RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. She thinks that she is the most shrewd person in the whole world and people won't be able to figure out the cunning plan that her goons appearing as protestors would mix with the crowd and carry out vandalism inside the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital," Adhikari said in a post on X.

Adhikari also alleged that the miscreants were given safe passage by the police. "They were given safe passage by the Police, who either ran away or looked the other way so that these lumpens would enter the hospital premises and destroy areas containing crucial evidence so that it doesn't get picked up by the CBI," he alleged in the post.

A postgraduate trainee doctor was raped and murdered at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata while on duty last week. The semi-naked body of the 32-year-old woman was found on August 9 morning in the seminar hall of the government-run hospital in the West Bengal capital. A civic volunteer has been arrested in connection with the crime.