RG Kar rape: Supreme Court transfers suo motu case to Calcutta High Court for monitoring

The Supreme Court on Wednesday transferred the suo motu proceedings in the RG Kar Medical College rape and murder case to the Calcutta High Court, bringing to an end nearly a year of monitoring by the apex court. [In Re: Alleged Rape And Murder Incident Of A Trainee Doctor In R.G. Kar Medical College And Hospital, Kolkata And Related Issues Versus].

A Bench of Justices MM Sundresh and Satish Chandra Sharma directed that the matter be placed before an appropriate division bench of the High Court, as decided by the Chief Justice.

The Court also directed that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) furnish its latest status report to the victim’s father.

During the hearing, Justice Sundresh observed that the High Court was the proper forum to continue supervising the investigation and trial.

“We deem it appropriate to send the proceedings to the division bench of the Calcutta High Court with a request to the Chief Justice to place the matter before an appropriate bench. The status report filed by the CBI shall be given to the father of the victim,” the Court ordered.

The Court was hearing the suo motu proceedings that began last year after the rape and murder of a 31-year-old postgraduate trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

The August 2024 incident had triggered widespread outrage and protests by doctors across the country over the lack of safety in public hospitals.

Today, Senior Advocate Karuna Nundy, appearing on behalf of over 50,000 doctors in West Bengal, said,

“This Court had constituted a National Task Force (NTF) recognising that a national consensus must evolve.”

She argued that the NTF’s work was crucial and that the Supreme Court should continue hearing the matter until the process was complete. The senior counsel added that the CBI’s status report had raised serious questions about the involvement of others.

However, the Bench noted that the Calcutta High Court was already seized of a petition filed by the victim’s parents and that continuing parallel proceedings would serve no purpose.

“This matter can be looked into by a constitutional court in West Bengal. The parents’ petition is also pending in the High Court,” Justice Sharma observed.

The Supreme Court had taken suo motu cognisance of the case in August 2024, days after the brutal crime inside the hospital premises. The Court, led by then Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, had described the incident as one that “shocked the conscience of the nation.” It also noted that the State had failed to maintain law and order when protests and vandalism broke out at the hospital shortly after the crime.

Taking note of growing violence against doctors, especially women, the Court had formed a National Task Force comprising senior medical administrators and officials to recommend systemic reforms for ensuring safe working conditions in hospitals.

“The nation cannot await a rape or murder for real changes on the ground,” the Supreme Court had said while constituting the task force.

The Court’s 2024 order had directed the Union and State governments to submit detailed data on hospital safety measures, including the number of security personnel, CCTV coverage, and implementation of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013.

In January 2025, a CBI court in Sealdah sentenced the main accused, former civic police volunteer Sanjay Roy, to life imprisonment after finding him guilty of rape and murder under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Roy was arrested two days after the incident, following forensic and CCTV evidence that directly linked him to the crime.

While the conviction brought some closure to the family, the broader institutional safety issues that led to the Supreme Court’s intervention remain under judicial scrutiny.

With today’s order, the Calcutta High Court will now take over supervision of both the ongoing investigations and the implementation of the NTF’s recommendations within the State.

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