‘RG Kar evidence tampered with, CBI must probe it’

In an interview with this newspaper, the senior advocate, who is also CPM Rajya Sabha MP, questions the delay in lodging an FIR.

With protests raging over the horrific rape and murder of a 31-year-old postgraduate trainee doctor, senior lawyer Bikashranjan Bhattacharya, who is representing the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital victim’s family in the court, believes that evidence has been tampered with and hints at huge corruption in the hospital administration. In an interview with this newspaper, the senior advocate, who is also CPM Rajya Sabha MP, questions the delay in lodging an FIR. Excerpts:

You are representing the family of the victim of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. What exactly happened?

The victim, a young doctor, comes from a lower middle-class family and she was brutally killed. The student community felt aggrieved and started agitation. I along with my colleagues met the parents to express our solidarity. Hearing from them I became apprehensive about the role of hospital administrators and police. As the principal of the college didn’t lodge the FIR, I personally felt that one civic volunteer couldn’t be the lone perpetrator.

Do you agree with the timeline submitted by Kapil Sibal on behalf of the West Bengal government in the Supreme Court?

The timeline given by the state government doesn’t at all satisfy the basic requirements of investigation of the rape and murder inside the hospital. Why would the police wait for more than 12 hours to lodge an FIR? It is the bounden duty of the police to lodge an FIR as soon as they come to know of a cognizable offence.

Some forensic experts claimed that more than one person could be involved. What do you think?

The forensic expert who interacted with me explained that the multiple injuries detected in the post-mortem report could not be possible by one individual. We have to rely on the expert opinion.

What do you have to say about the arrest of a civic volunteer?

To my perception, a civic volunteer ordinarily would not have dared to approach a working doctor. He might have been misdirected by the genuine culprits who might be her colleagues to make him a scapegoat.

Do you believe evidences have been tampered with as claimed by some people?

There is no doubt that evidence has been tampered with. The CBI should also investigate who was responsible for such tampering.

Since taking over the probe, it seems the CBI has made little headway. The Trinamool Congress has been talking about it.

The ⁠CBI has an uphill task and would take time but it has to prove its efficiency being the premier investigating agency of the country. If the CBI fails to reveal the truth, that will give a premium to the criminals.

What about the role of the administration?

The state administration is also involved in the prolonged corrupt practices prevailing at the hospital. I apprehend that the victim might have become a difficult person to negotiate with deep-rooted corruption in the hospital administration.