Security officials sit at the entrance of the medical emergency ward that was vandalised by an unidentified mob on August 15, inside the premises of R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 16, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
Opposition parties in West Bengal amped up the protests against the Trinamool Congress government and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the R.G. Kar Hospital rape-murder, with the BJP organising demonstrations across the State and the Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist) calling for a 12-hour bandh on Friday.
BJP staged a protest on the intervening midnight of Thursday and Friday, at Shyambazar five-point crossing, just 500 m from the hospital where a woman doctor was raped and murdered on August 9. Around 100 party workers gathered at the spot and got into a scuffle with police. Many protestors claimed that the “police beat them up mercilessly”.
Also Read | Mamata Banerjee leads rally in Kolkata, demands justice for ‘raped and murdered’ woman doctor
Taking part in the protests, BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul said that she did not believe Ms. Banerjee’s claims of wanting the death penalty for the accused. “Mamata Banerjee is trying to silence us. She cracked down on our peaceful protests. We are now going to the High Court. The world may fall apart but the BJP will protest,” she said.
Accompanying Ms. Paul was former Rajya Sabha MP Roopa Ganguly, who demanded that Ms. Banerjee resign from the post of Chief Minister.
Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari said, “I am one of the petitioners in the R.G. Kar case. I demand that the CBI not be given an independent investigation. Court supervision is important as history has seen CBI being soft towards Mamata.” He claimed that the Central agency had never investigated Ms. Banerjee, no matter who in West Bengal they question about scams and cases, he said, justifying his demand for a court-supervised investigation.
Adhikar also went on to say, “She is asking for a death penalty by CBI for the accused by Sunday. Eta ki apnar mamar bari? (Is this your uncle’s house?”)
Lok Sabha MP and BJP leader Sukanta Majumdar also participated in the protests. Sitting down on the road in Shyambazar, he joined his party workers in raising slogans demanding Ms. Banerjee’s resignation.
BJP also held protests in multiple places across the country. Commenting on the rape and murder incident, former BJP Minister Smriti Irani said, “Why are they allowing renovation at the site? They arranged for evidence tampering at the R.G. Kar hospital. She [Ms. Banerjee] is protecting people.”
SUCI(C) calls general strike
Many members of SUCI(C) were detained from the protest site at Hazra in south Kolkata even as the organisation intensified its protests after calling for a bandh on Friday.
Party workers blocked roads in many parts of the city and took out marches at multiple locations across the State. The workers criticised the West Bengal government’s failure to control the mob violence at R.G. Kar on Thursday.
The remains of the broken police barricades lie in piles at R.G. Kar Hospital’s entrance.
| Photo Credit:
Shrabana Chatterjee
Subroto Gouri, a SUCI member of the West Bengal State Committee, told The Hindu, “266 of our workers were detained across the State. 70 of them are women. The violence on August 15 night happened under the police’s watch. We believe that there is a bigger issue behind the R.G. Kar murder. Sanjay Ray, the one arrested in this case, is only a scapegoat. There are bigger culprits behind it.”
CPI(M) responds
Speaking to The Hindu, senior CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty said, “TMC supporters are also going against Mamata now. TMC leaders like Santanu Sen have also spoken against R.G. Kar violence and the role of the principle accused Sandip Ray. She should leave the Health and Police Ministry immediately because she has lost all credibility as a leader.”
Commenting on speculation that the mob involved in Thursday’s violence could have been part of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), the youth wing of CPI(M), Mr. Chakraborty said, “If it was us, Mamata’s police would have beaten us to death. The infiltrators were waiting behind our rally to camouflage within the crowd and enter the hospital premises to vandalise and tamper with evidence.”
“This mob was spirited by the Mamata Banerjee speech made on August 14 evening where she said Ram, Bam sobaike maro (BJP, Left, beat everyone),” he added.
