The West Bengal government has moved the Calcutta High Court seeking death penalty for Sanjay Roy, the convict in the rape and murder of a junior doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital..Additional district and sessions judge Anirban Das had sentenced Roy to life imprisonment on Monday.The trial judge refused to impose death penalty, stating that the crime could not be classified as "rarest of rare" which is the test to impose capital punishment. The State government today mentioned the matter before a Bench headed by Justice Debangshu Basak and stated that it was moving an appeal to seek death penalty. Earlier, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had announced the decision to appeal against the sentencing order."In the R.G. Kar junior doctor's rape and murder case, I am really shocked to see that the judgement of the Court today finds that it is not a Rarest of Rare case! I am convinced that it is indeed a rarest of rare case which demands capital punishment. How could the judgement come to the conclusion that it is not a rarest of rare case?!," Banerjee said in a post on social platform X.Interestingly, the matter was probed and the prosecution was conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and not the State Police since the investigation was transferred from Kolkata Police to the CBI by the Calcutta High Court..The case concerns the rape and murder of a 31-year-old resident doctor, who was found dead at the State-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9, 2024.The doctor was found dead at a seminar hall of the college and an autopsy confirmed that she was raped and murdered.The incident sparked nationwide outrage and protests with doctors in various parts of the country going on strike demanding stricter laws and policing to ensure the safety of medical professionals.Roy, civic volunteer with the city police, was arrested by the Kolkata Police on August 10, 2024 a day after the incident..The investigation into the case was eventually transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) by the Calcutta High Court. The trial court in West Bengal framed criminal charges for rape and murder against Roy. The trial started on November 12, 2024 and concluded on January 9 with the CBI seeking the death penalty for Roy..The trial court convicted Roy on January 18 after an in-camera trial that lasted 57 days."The CCTV footages, the version of the accused during his examination u/s 351 BNSS, the contradictory defence pleas without any evidence, the DNA examination reports points the arrows towards this accused only behind the incident of rape and murder of the victim and the involvement of any other person behind the said incident can easily be ruled out," the judge held.The Court also criticised both the Kolkata police and the RG Kar Hospital for various lapses on their part in handling the case, but added that these lapses were not fatal to the prosecution's case."I think that the illegal/indifferent/lackadaisical acts on the part of the police authority of Tala PS as well as the administrative wing of R.G Kar Medical College and Hospital will not stand as a stumbling block on the way of trial of this case," it said.However, it refused to impose death penalty.It said that courts must rise above primitive considerations like "an eye for an eye" when it comes to imposing punishment.Courts have a duty to ensure that justice is based on evidence and not just public sentiments, it said.
The West Bengal government has moved the Calcutta High Court seeking death penalty for Sanjay Roy, the convict in the rape and murder of a junior doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital..Additional district and sessions judge Anirban Das had sentenced Roy to life imprisonment on Monday.The trial judge refused to impose death penalty, stating that the crime could not be classified as "rarest of rare" which is the test to impose capital punishment. The State government today mentioned the matter before a Bench headed by Justice Debangshu Basak and stated that it was moving an appeal to seek death penalty. Earlier, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had announced the decision to appeal against the sentencing order."In the R.G. Kar junior doctor's rape and murder case, I am really shocked to see that the judgement of the Court today finds that it is not a Rarest of Rare case! I am convinced that it is indeed a rarest of rare case which demands capital punishment. How could the judgement come to the conclusion that it is not a rarest of rare case?!," Banerjee said in a post on social platform X.Interestingly, the matter was probed and the prosecution was conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and not the State Police since the investigation was transferred from Kolkata Police to the CBI by the Calcutta High Court..The case concerns the rape and murder of a 31-year-old resident doctor, who was found dead at the State-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9, 2024.The doctor was found dead at a seminar hall of the college and an autopsy confirmed that she was raped and murdered.The incident sparked nationwide outrage and protests with doctors in various parts of the country going on strike demanding stricter laws and policing to ensure the safety of medical professionals.Roy, civic volunteer with the city police, was arrested by the Kolkata Police on August 10, 2024 a day after the incident..The investigation into the case was eventually transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) by the Calcutta High Court. The trial court in West Bengal framed criminal charges for rape and murder against Roy. The trial started on November 12, 2024 and concluded on January 9 with the CBI seeking the death penalty for Roy..The trial court convicted Roy on January 18 after an in-camera trial that lasted 57 days."The CCTV footages, the version of the accused during his examination u/s 351 BNSS, the contradictory defence pleas without any evidence, the DNA examination reports points the arrows towards this accused only behind the incident of rape and murder of the victim and the involvement of any other person behind the said incident can easily be ruled out," the judge held.The Court also criticised both the Kolkata police and the RG Kar Hospital for various lapses on their part in handling the case, but added that these lapses were not fatal to the prosecution's case."I think that the illegal/indifferent/lackadaisical acts on the part of the police authority of Tala PS as well as the administrative wing of R.G Kar Medical College and Hospital will not stand as a stumbling block on the way of trial of this case," it said.However, it refused to impose death penalty.It said that courts must rise above primitive considerations like "an eye for an eye" when it comes to imposing punishment.Courts have a duty to ensure that justice is based on evidence and not just public sentiments, it said.
