RG Kar Protest RG Kar rape-murder: East Bengal, Mohun Bagan supporters in rare unity demonstrate outside Salt Lake Stadium, police resort to 'lathi-charge'
In an unimaginable show of unity between two traditional arch-rivals of Kolkata derby, fans of both East Bengal and Mohun Bagan football clubs on Sunday assembled in thousands outside Kolkata's Salt Lake stadium despite the cancellation of the Durand Cup match and raised slogan for justice for the RG Kar Hospital rape and murder victim.
Police allegedly lathi-charged to disperse the supporters of football giants East Bengal and Mohun Bagan who were demonstrating for the trainee doctor who was raped and murdered in RG Kar Medical College Hospital recently. A suspected cover-up attempt triggered a massive protest against the Mamata Banerjee government.
A woman protester told a local media channel: "The protest cannot be stopped by merely lathicharing us."
Kolkata football giants Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and Mohammedan supporters demonstrated outside Salt Lake Stadium against the rape and murder of a female doctor in Kolkata recently. Police resorted to lathicharge to disperse the crowd. #KolkataDeathCase #KolkataDoctor… pic.twitter.com/OW5Q2Tm8yS
— India Blooms (@indiablooms) August 18, 2024
Meanwhile, the scheduled derby match between the two Kolkata football giants has been cancelled.
The protesters were seen holding Mohun Bagan or East Bengal flags during their demonstration on Kolkata's EM Bypass area.
A large number of police have been deployed near the stadium.
The police had earlier enforced prohibitory orders under Section 163 of BNSS from 4 pm to midnight at the stadium area on Sunday.
Supporters were seen holding placards demanding 'justice' for the doctor.
"We only have one demand today which is justice for RG Kar," one supporter said.
Another supporter said: "Why did the authorities cancel the derby today? You can depute police against the protesters but you cannot ensure the match was held. What is this? Is it the fear that spectators would protest inside the stadium?"
The city has witnessed several protests demanding justice for the female doctor ever since it came to light.
Meanwhile, the Kolkata Police Sunday summoned Trinamool Congress MP Sukhendu Shekhar Ray for allegedly spreading misinformation about the details surrounding the brutal rape and murder of a post-graduate trainee doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. The summons comes hours after the TMC leader raised serious questions about the conduct of the investigation by the Kolkata Police.
The summons follows closely on the heels of the Kolkata Police issuing notices to actor-turned-BJP leader Locket Chatterjee and two doctors - Kunal Sarkar and Subarno Goswami - over misinformation spread too.
In a strongly worded post on X, Sukhendu Shekhar Ray claimed that a dog squad was sent to the crime scene three days after the body of the victim was found on August 9.
He expressed his dissatisfaction with the handling of the case by the Kolkata Police and demanded the custodial interrogation of both the former Principal of RG Kar Medical College, Dr Sandip Ghosh, and Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal.
"CBI must act fairly. Custodial interrogation of Ex Principal and Police Commissioner is a must to know who and why floated suicide story. Why wall of hall demolished, who patronised Roy to be so powerful, Why sniffer dog used after 3 days. 100s of such questions. Make them speak," Ray posted.
Meanwhile, on Saturday, the former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Dr Sandip Ghosh, was quizzed by CBI officials for the second consecutive day and has been summoned for questioning on Sunday too. The questioning, which lasted for several hours, focused on his actions and responses on the night of the incident.
The CBI is corroborating Dr Ghosh's account with testimonies from other medical staff and police officers who were on duty that night. He resigned two days after the discovery of the doctor's body on August 9.
The CBI is investigating around 40 individuals, including doctors, interns, and police officers. The agency has already questioned over 20 people, and forensic teams have been deployed to collect and analyse evidence from multiple locations, including the RG Kar hospital and the residence of the prime accused, Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer of Kolkata Police.
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