Abandoned Bag Triggers Bomb Scare at Kolkata's RG Kar Hospital

Kolkata: An unclaimed bag found at the protest site of Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital triggered a bomb scare on Thursday. After receiving the information, a bomb disposal squad arrived at the scene, and the police cordoned off the area. The bag was found by junior doctors participating in the protest on the hospital campus. It was left next to the portrait of the victim, which had been set up for citizens to pay their respects.

For the unversed, the protest site had been set up right in front of RG Kar Hospital by junior doctors who had been agitating for over a month against the rape-murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor on August 9. Various protest activities, including meetings and marches, were organized from this location. Recently, however, many of the protesting doctors left the site to participate in a rally at Swasthya Bhavan in Salt Lake. 

On the other hand, sleuths of the ED, earlier in the day, started search operations at the residences and offices of persons 'close' to arrested former principal of RG Kar hospital, Sandip Ghosh, in connection with alleged financial irregularities at the medical establishment.

The search operations were conducted at the flat of Chandan Louhya in Kolkata’s Tala area and an office in Kalindi.

Another team of the Enforcement Directorate was conducting a raid at Ghosh's ancestral home in Chinar Park in North 24 Parganas district. "Our officers are questioning Louhya and his wife. She had been shown favour by Ghosh in granting a tender," an official said.

"There is another team looking for documents at the office of an organisation, which used to supply equipment to RG Kar hospital. There are some dubious transactions between the medical establishment and this organisation," he added.

The ED, alongside the CBI, is conducting a parallel investigation of the alleged financial irregularities at the state-run hospital.

The CBI had earlier arrested Ghosh and three of his accomplices in connection with the case.