More Stories

Informist, Monday, Jan. 20, 2025

NEW DELHI – West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Monday expressed dissatisfaction over the sentencing of Sanjay Roy, convicted in the rape and murder of a 31-year-old junior doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, to life imprisonment, and reiterated that the convict should have been given the death penalty. Further, she slammed the Central Bureau of Investigation's probe into the incident and asserted that the state police would have ensured death penalty to the convict. 

"I learned about the sentencing from the media. We have always demanded capital punishment and we continue to stand by it. However, this is the court's decision and I can't say much about this. For three other cases, state police ensured capital punishment through thorough investigations concluded within 54-60 days. This was a serious case. Had it been under our purview, we would have ensured death penalty long back," Banerjee said while addressing the media at Murshidabad.

Banerjee also alleged that the case was deliberately taken away from the state police. "I'm not aware of how the CBI handled the case. Even though we had said that we would hand over the case if needed, the case was deliberately taken away from us. Our primary goal was always to secure the harshest possible punishment for the convict. I am not satisfied with this verdict," she said.

Earlier in the day, an additional district court at Sealdah in Kolkata on Monday sentenced Roy, a civic volunteer, to life imprisonment. On Saturday, the court had held that Roy was "guilty" of rape and murder of the junior doctor. Additional District Judge Anirban Das on Monday, however, rejected the CBI's plea for death penalty, saying it was not the "rarest of rare" cases. The court ordered Roy to pay a fine of INR 50,000 and asked the state of West Bengal to pay INR 1.7 million as compensation to the victim's family.

Roy claimed that all allegations against him were false. "I am being implicated. I am innocent, I am not being allowed to say anything. I have been tortured, beaten," Roy said. The CBI asked for the death penalty and said Roy's offence fell under the rarest of rare crimes. "She (the victim) was an asset to society. The offence shook India. Not many girl child goes for higher education. It is a gruesome crime," the probe agency said.

The junior doctor was found dead at the seminar hall at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on Aug. 9. Police had, thereafter, arrested Roy in connection with the case. The gruesome incident led to protests and strikes by doctors across several cities demanding justice. On Aug. 13, the Calcutta High Court transferred the probe to the Central Bureau of Investigation.  

The CBI in October filed a chargesheet against the prime accused under Sections 64, 66, 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The agency had sought the harshest punishment for Roy, presenting evidence, including closed-circuit television camera footage, which indicated his presence near the crime scene. 

The case caught the Supreme Court's attention on Aug. 20, when it observed that the nation cannot wait for another rape for things to change on the ground. Taking suo moto cognisance of the incident, the apex court had formed a national task force to make recommendations on the safety and working conditions of medical professionals. If women are not able to go to work and conditions are not safe, we are denying them equality, said then Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud had said.  End

Reported by Kuldeep Singh

Edited by Tanima Banerjee

For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.

Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd, a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt Ltd.

Informist Media Tel +91 (11) 4220-1000

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2025. All rights reserved.