Kolkata Rape-Murder Case: Court Orders CBI Custody of Former RG Kar Principal

The Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate of Sealdah Court on Sunday directed the police custody of Dr. Sandip Ghosh, former principal of RG Kar Medical College, and Abhijit Mondol, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Tala Police Station, to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the August 9 rape and murder case at the medical college. Both suspects will remain in CBI custody until September 17.

During the hearing, the CBI lawyer presented call detail records (CDR) between Mondol and Ghosh on the night of the incident, indicating a possible link between the two, which the agency sought to investigate further. “We need to confront both suspects,” the lawyer argued.

The CBI contended that the case was mishandled, specifically pointing to Mondol’s failure to approach the matter as a case of sexual assault. “Mondol conspired with others… We are treating him as a suspect, not as a police officer,” the lawyer said, adding that Mondol downplayed the case as a suicide and neglected his duty by not filing an FIR.

The defence lawyer, however, challenged the basis for arrest, arguing that the arrest grounds were unclear and that the case could at most be considered a dereliction of duty. “There is no valid reason for arrest. They are seeking to uncover a nexus, but that doesn’t justify custody,” the defence argued.

Both Ghosh and Mondol were subsequently taken to the CBI Special Crime Branch Office in Salt Lake for further interrogation.

Their arrests on Saturday by the CBI have intensified pressure on the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government, as the investigation into the brutal rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor in Kolkata continues.