New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday flagged discrepancies in the status report filed by the West Bengal government, while hearing a suo motu case related to the rape and murder of a postgraduate medic at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.
A bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra assembled to hear the matter after CBI and West Bengal government submitted their status reports on the case.
The court also debunked the gangrape theory in the case stating that the quantity of semen found in the body of the victim was 151ml and not 151 gm.
Justice Pardiwala also questioned the state over the timing of the postmortem. Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing West Bengal, defended the report saying it is based on the case diary.
While calling the fact extremely disturbing, the CJI said, “The GD entry of death is recorded at 10:10 am…the securing of the crime scene, the seizures etc was done at 11:30 at night? what was happening all by then?”
Meanwhile, SG Tushar Mehta, also accused that the crime scene was altered before the CBI entered the probe on the fifth day from the date of incident. The state government however denied the allegations. Sibal said, “Everything is videographed not altered.”
Addressing the concerns of protesting AIIMS’ doctors in Nagpur, who were marked absent and not allowed to sit for exams, CJI urged doctors to return to work. CJI Chandrachud said, ” how can we tell the administration to mark something which is not correct, ask them to first return to work, nobody will then take an action.”
The top court on Tuesday had constituted a 10-member National Task Force (NTF) to formulate a protocol for ensuring the safety and security of doctors and other health care professionals. Terming the incident as “horrific”, the apex court had excoriated the state government over the delay in filing the FIR and allowing thousands of miscreants to vandalise the state-run facility.
The Supreme Court, after resuming the hearing, said that National Task Force will hear all stakeholders formulation of national protocol for safety of doctors.
The three-judge bench also directed the Ministry of Health to open a portal where stakeholders can submit their suggestions before the committee.
“A number of counsels took part on behalf of doctors and other stakeholders. earlier while forming a national task force it was decided that NTF shall consult all stakeholders and thus we hope and trust that all stakeholders likely to be affected will be heard and the ones who are responsible for maintaining safe workplaces for medical professionals. The counsels have placed some additional suggestions such as institutionalising of distress call system, registration institutional FIR and the constitution of compensation distress fund. Let NTF consider all of this,” the CJI said.
The Court also asked protesting doctors to resume normal work, while saying that justice and medicine cannot afford to be stopped.
“There shall be no coercive action against doctors for protesting,” the SC added.
The SC has decided to hear the suo motu case next on September 5 and has also ordered re-sealing of status reports of CBI, West Bengal govt.
Highlights from today’s hearing:
- SC directs Kolkata Police officer, who registered first entry about rape-murder incident, to appear on next hearing to disclose time.
- SC debunks gangrape theory.
- SC questions sequence, timing of legal formalities conducted by police in registration of unnatural death, postmortem.
- SC says it is very surprising that postmortem of deceased was conducted before registration of case as unnatural death.
- SC terms as ‘extremely disturbing’ delay by Kolkata Police in registering unnatural death in its records.
- Victim’s friend suspected cover up and insisted on videography, CBI tells SC.
- State police told parents it was suicide, then they said it was murder, CBI tells SC.
- Most shocking fact is that FIR was registered at 11.45 pm after cremation of deceased, SG Tushar Mehta tells SC.
- SC asks how will public health infrastructure run if doctors do not work.
- SC says its heart goes out to all patients visiting public hospitals.
- The top court reaffirmed that peaceful protests would not disturbed or disrupted. No action will be taken against those protesting peacefully against the incident.
- SC has directed National Task Force to hear all stakeholders in formulation of national protocol for safety of doctors.
- Supreme Court also directed the Ministry of Health to open a portal where stakeholders can submit their suggestions before the committee.
- Supreme Court directs all states and Union Territories shall ensure that states can prevent any apprehension of violence at medical establishments.
- SC asks protesting doctors to resume normal work, says justice and medicine cannot afford to be stopped.
- Court posts hearing on suo motu case on September 5, orders re-sealing of status reports of CBI, WB govt.
Here’s what CBI said in SC
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing in the court on behalf of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), alleged that senior doctors at the Kolkata hospital as well as the victim’s colleagues had asked for videograph, which means even they felt that there was a cover-up.
“The (victim’s) father insists on the registration of an FIR. The hospital does not register the FIR. The father insisted and got the FIR registered. The FIR is lodged after the cremation. This is an attempt to cover up. We entered the probe on day five, everything was altered by then,” Mehta said.
He said the first FIR in the incident was filed only after the victim’s cremation at 11:45 pm.
“Initially, the authorities told the parents that it was suicide but later, it was classified as death,” he added.
As the hearing commenced after lunch, the court asked what was the reason for a 14-hour delay in lodging the FIR in connection with the incident.
“Who was in touch with the principal of the RG Kar Medical College? Why did he delay the FIR? What was the purpose?” the bench asked.
Questioning the sequence and timing of the legal formalities conducted by police, the court said it is very surprising that the post-mortem was conducted between 6:10 pm and 7:10 pm on August 9, even before the case of unnatural death was registered.
“How was it that the post-mortem was conducted at 6:10 pm on August 9 and yet the unnatural death information is sent to the Tala police station at 11:30 pm on August 9? This is extremely disturbing,” the bench said.
It directed the Kolkata Police officer, who registered the first entry about the incident that has shocked the country, to appear in the next hearing and disclose the time of the entry.
Mehta told the court that the most shocking fact is that the FIR was registered at 11:45 pm, after the post-graduate medic was cremated.
“The state police told the parents it was suicide. Then they said it was murder. Victim’s friends suspected a cover up and insisted on videography,” Mehta told the bench.
The alleged rape and murder of the junior doctor in a seminar hall of the state-run hospital has sparked nationwide protests.
The medic’s body with severe injury marks was found inside the seminar hall of the hospital’s chest department on August 9. A civic volunteer was arrested by the Kolkata Police in connection with the case the following day.
On August 13, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe from the Kolkata Police to the CBI, which started its investigation on August 14.
