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The Supreme Court of India is adjourned and will now hear the Suo Motu case concerning the brutal rape and murder of a doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on January 29, 2025. The case, which has shaken the medical community and the nation, was taken up by the court in August 2023 after the body of a postgraduate trainee doctor was found in a seminar room of the hospital. The horrific crime, which occurred after her night shift, has sparked widespread outrage and calls for enhanced safety measures for healthcare professionals.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Sanjiv Khanna, along with Justices Sanjay Kumar and K.V. Viswanathan, took up the case in the recent hearing. Due to time constraints, the CJI noted, “I received the list this morning. I believe three applications have been filed by you (addressing Senior Advocate Karuna Nandy)—one for additional documents, another for directions, and others. Please provide a copy to the other side. We will take it up next Wednesday at 2 PM.”
The Incident
On August 9, 2023, the body of a young woman doctor was discovered at the RG Kar Medical College & Hospital in Kolkata. The victim, who had been working a night shift, was brutally raped and murdered, with the accused later identified as Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer.
The next day, the Kolkata Police captured Roy; however, dissatisfaction with the police investigation inspired the Calcutta High Court to change the case’s jurisdiction to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on 13 August. This case was taken suo motu by the Supreme Court on 19 August for an all broader research into the safety of medical practitioners in India.
On 20 January 2025, the special court in Kolkata convicted Sanjay Roy and sentenced him to life imprisonment for his involvement in the rape and murder. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on the convict and directed the West Bengal government to pay Rs 17 lakh as compensation to the victim’s family. However, the investigating agency, CBI, argued in the appeal that it qualified to be considered as “rarest of rare” and hence should have incurred the death penalty.
The West Bengal government, sharing the CBI’s view, appealed for the death penalty for Roy, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee stating, “I am convinced this is a rarest of rare cases that demands capital punishment.” The Calcutta High Court has scheduled a hearing for January 27, 2025, to decide whether the state’s appeal will be admitted, with the CBI and the victim’s family expected to present their views.
The CBI, however, has raised the issue of whether the state’s appeal is proper or not, as it is a right of the prosecuting agency to challenge the judgment of the trial court. According to the agency, the sentence of life imprisonment given to Roy was too light for the heinous crime.
In addition to the criminal case, the Supreme Court is also addressing broader concerns regarding the safety of medical professionals, particularly those working in state-run hospitals. In the previous hearings, the court noted that a National Task Force (NTF) had been established to provide recommendations for enhancing security measures for healthcare workers across the country. The court directed that the States and Union Territories respond to the NTF’s recommendations, and it also asked the AIIMS to consider a plea raised by doctors regarding whether the period of their protests should be counted as time away from duty.
It has brought into the fore the long-pending issue of better protection for medical professionals in the face of such barbaric incidents. The CJI and the bench have vowed to redress the concerns and take adequate measures to ensure that the lives of healthcare professionals are not lost to the system.
