RG Kar verdict: Kolkata court pronounces accused Sanjay Roy guilty of rape-murder of on-duty medic
Kolkata (PTI): A Kolkata court on Saturday declared Sanjay Roy "guilty" of raping and murdering an on-duty doctor at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, a heinous crime that sparked nationwide outrage and prolonged protests.
The Sealdah court, where Roy’s trial was held, will declare his sentence on Monday, Anirban Das, the additional district and sessions judge, said.
The judgement was pronounced nearly two months after the in-camera trial commenced in November last year and 162 days after the heinous crime was committed on August 9, 2024.
Roy was found guilty under Sections 64 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita that governs rape, and Sections 66 and 103 (1) of the Act, which deals with punishments for death and murder.
Section 103 (1) of BNS entails a possible punishment of death or life imprisonment.
The judge stated that Roy was found guilty of sexually assaulting the doctor and strangling her to death, and that the CBI had proven all the charges against him.
Das said Roy’s statement will be heard at 12:30 pm on Monday, and the sentence will be pronounced thereafter.
At the time of the delivery of the verdict, Roy claimed in court that he was framed.
In his defense, Roy said, "I wear a rudraksh necklace, and if I had committed the crime, it would have snapped.”
After the judgement, police whisked away Roy from the courtroom to the Presidency Correctional Home under strict vigil, preventing the waiting media persons from attempting any kind of interaction with the convict.
The medic’s parents thanked the judge for the guilty verdict and said the court honoured the trust they had reposed in it.
In its chargesheet, the CBI had mentioned Roy, a civic volunteer with the city police, as the prime and sole suspect of committing the gruesome rape and murder of the postgraduate trainee at the state-run hospital.
The Kolkata Police, which was investigating the case initially, arrested Roy on August 10, a day after the medic's body was recovered from the seminar room of the hospital.
The Calcutta High Court later transferred the case to the CBI, which had sought death penalty for the accused.
The in-camera trial in the rape and murder of the doctor commenced on November 12, and 50 witnesses were examined.
Hearing of the trial concluded on January 9.
The crime led to nationwide outrage and prolonged protests by junior doctors in Kolkata, demanding justice for the victim and stronger security arrangements in state-run hospitals.
Opposition political parties, including the BJP and the CPI(M), protested the ghastly crime, but apolitical movements demanding justice were more visible, with members of the civil society being at the forefront.
Members of the civil society in Kolkata and some other cities of the state took out midnight rallies, calling those ‘Reclaim the Night’ to demand justice for the doctor, who was christened ‘Abhaya’ by some and ‘Tilottama’ by others.
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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".
