RG Kar rape-murder convict's mother says he should get the punishment he deserves
Kolkata: The mother of Sanjoy Roy, who was convicted for the rape and murder of the medic of R G Kar Medical College and Hospital, on Sunday said if her son is guilty then he should get the punishment he deserves, even if it means hanging.
She said she will "cry alone" but will accept his punishment as destiny.
Initially reticent to speak to the media after the Sealdah court convicted Sanjay on January 18, Malati Roy the mother of Sanjay told reporters on Sunday morning that being a woman, and a mother of three daughters, "I can feel the anguish and pain of the mother of the woman medic who is like my daughter."
"If the court decides to hang him to death, I don't have any objection as his crime has been proved in the eye of the law, I will cry alone but accept it as a quirk of fate, something willed by destiny," the 70-year-old-woman said standing on the doorstep of her shanty on Shambhunath Pandit Street, about 5 km away from the commotion and buzz at Sealdah Court the other day.
Asked if she had turned up during any of the court hearings or met Roy at the lockup, she replied "No. Why should I? Despite my failing health I would have tried to visit if the charges were found to be untrue."
Sanjay has three sisters and one of them died years back.
One of the elder sisters, who lives close to Malati's home, at her in-law's place, on Saturday said in case he is proven guilty, the law should take its own course punishing him and the family has no plan to challenge the order on its own in any court.
The middle-aged woman, her face partially covered in dupatta, told reporters at a shanty in the Bhawanipore area that she had not visited the Sealdah Court room where her brother was produced and the court pronounced him guilty.
"Please leave me alone. We are shattered," she said when reporters continued to ask if she thought her brother was really guilty.
"But if he has committed any crime, he should get proper punishment. We don't have any plan to challenge the order on our part. I am living in my in-laws house. I don't have any contact with my family since my marriage in 2007 while my mother is not well," she said.
The woman, who did not wish to divulge her identity or name, said her brother used to be like any normal boy during his childhood days.
"As he grew up, he turned to booze but apart from that I myself did not ever hear any case about Sanjay misbehaving with any woman. Of course as we did not have regular contact with him in the past few years and he used to live in a separate locality I don't have any fair idea about his associations and whether he was involved in any criminal offence," she said.
The woman, however, added "There are reports in media that Sanjay was not alone at the site of crime. So I would expect that investigations must have been thorough to find only one person's involvement in such a crime. Had others been involved directly or indirectly that should also be investigated and they should be brought to book."
"Since Sanjay's arrest, we were under the stigma and everyone from neighbours to relatives would point fingers at us saying we are Sanjay's kin. I hope we are clearing the air now," the elder sister said.
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Marxism will remain relevant despite Left electoral's losses, says general secretary M A Baby
New Delhi (PTI): CPI(M) General Secretary M A Baby on Thursday asserted that the Left movement would remain relevant despite not being in power in any state, saying the ideology would continue to endure as long as social and economic inequalities persist.
Hitting back at BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar over his reported remarks that Marxism had become irrelevant, Baby, in an interview with PTI Videos, said, "So long as there is division in society, so long as there is exploitation of the majority of workers, peasants and ordinary masses by a handful of billionaires, Marxism will remain relevant."
"That perhaps Mr Rajeev Chandrasekhar may not be able to understand, but this is the fact of the matter," he said.
Baby acknowledged that the CPI(M)-led Left was currently without an elected government in any state, but maintained that electoral setbacks would not diminish the movement's role.
"We may not have an elected government in any state. There were occasions when we didn't have a government. But the red flag and the commitment to organise and struggle for the rights of the dispossessed, marginalised and exploited will always be upheld by CPI(M) and the Left movement," he said.
He said the Left continued to enjoy support among workers, peasants, agricultural labourers, youth, students and women, and argued that the movement remained necessary because "oppression and assault" continued in society.
"So long as such problems exist in society, the red flag and the working class movement will continue to work among the masses," the Left leader said.
Exuding confidence on the Left's revival, Baby said the party would reflect on the reasons behind its electoral loss.
"We may be rejected in one election, but we will stage our comeback by understanding what went wrong with us," he said, adding, "We will listen to people and we will come back with higher strength."
Baby also criticised the Congress over reported factional tensions in Kerala after the Congress-led United Democratic Front's victory in the state.
"The way they are behaving is being watched by the people of Kerala," he said, referring to infighting within the Congress.
"Those who have given a massive majority to Congress and UDF would be watching all this," he added, while urging party leaders to "settle the problem in an amicable, democratic manner".
Referring to West Bengal, Baby alleged that violence had escalated following the BJP's victory in the state assembly polls.
"It is quite unfortunate that the moment BJP snatched a massive victory in West Bengal, violence has also started on a big scale," he said.
He also accused the Trinamool Congress of being "notorious for violent activities" and alleged that the "RSS-controlled BJP" had "unleashed violence in many places" after the election results.
"This is not good for Bengal, not good for the country. We wish and hope that normalcy would be restored as soon as possible," he said.
Baby said the CPI(M) and the Left in West Bengal would continue efforts to "pacify people" and avoid violence and confrontation.
Asked about former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan not reacting publicly to the election results, Baby said Vijayan would respond "at an appropriate time".
