The brutal rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital has caused nationwide outrage not just because of the heinous nature of the crime, the barbarity involved, and the alleged attempts to cover up the crime, but also because it has touched a chord on an issue that concerns every working Indian woman—that of workplace safety. In the world’s fifth largest economy, where women form a large part of the workforce, why will it be difficult to ensure physical security for women at their workplace? Why would any such incident take place inside an office—as the hospital was in the case of the young woman? Even one such incident in a country of 1.4 billion people should not take place. There is no doubt that the case sheds light on the dangers faced by junior doctors, all of whom have to work night shifts. The doctors are seeing this case through the prism of their own safety at their workplace, given that they often have to face the wrath of the patients’ family members when anything goes wrong. That is the reason why resident doctors went on a two-day nationwide strike earlier this week. But this matter transcends the issue of doctors’ safety. It is an issue of gender violence, safety of women in general, conditions being provided to women at their workplace, as well as a speedy investigation and delivery of justice, apart from the quantum of punishment that should be given in these “rarest of rare cases”.
Specifically on the issue of working conditions for women, working night shifts is a must in many professions, including healthcare and the media. Women stay in office late and return home even later. Most organisations nowadays take cases of sexual harassment very seriously and punish the perpetrators. While there are guidelines on preventing sexual harassment at workplace under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, there also must be pre-emption, especially when it’s about ensuring working women’s physical security. In fact, providing safe transport back home to women who work night shifts should be mandatory. Self-defence lessons should be given to working women as a rule. But what happens when a case of gruesome sexual violence and murder takes place inside the workplace? Then it is a case of criminal laxity—and that’s what the RG Kar administration is guilty of. It allowed the rapist and murderer, Sanjoy Roy to roam freely inside the hospital even though he was not an employee. The Kolkata Police allowed him to pose as a policeman even though he was a mere civic volunteer, and this in spite of knowing that he was acting as a tout and milking the patients. All of them are responsible for what happened to the young woman and should be made accountable for that.
Amid this, what is surprising is the manner in which this sensitive case has been mishandled by the Mamata Banerjee government. The very fact that the college and the principal initially tried to pass off the rape and murder as a case of suicide, proves that an attempt was made to cover up the incident. Mamata Banerjee should have sacked the principal, Sandip Ghosh, just for this reason. Instead, the principal, who had to resign under public pressure, was reinstated by the Chief Minister in a better-ranked medical college within a few hours. It was only the court’s intervention that resulted in the cancellation of the appointment. What kind of influence does the principal of a medical college wield over a state government for him to be reappointed in such a rush? The question that is bothering a lot of people is if the principal knows anything incriminating that may land the ruling party of Bengal in trouble. Rumours are doing the rounds about this being a gang rape, with at least one of the criminals being the son of someone influential. All these could be just rumours and could have been scotched if the Mamata Banerjee government was proactive in handing over the case to the CBI as soon as the medical students made the demand. That would have shown good intent on her part. But Mamata Banerjee’s aversion to the CBI is legendary. She calls the investigating agency partisan and a tool of the Central government to harass its opponents. It is not known if that’s the reason why she refused to meet the students’ demand. But now that the court has asked the CBI to take over the investigation, rumours are swirling in Bengal about the local police destroying evidence—which could be a canard, but the government’s action, or inaction is reinforcing this belief among a public which is furious with the deteriorating law and order situation in the state. Adding fuel to the public anger are allegations of corruption and nepotism in the RG Kar Medical College. One such allegation is about the existence of a clique of politically affiliated medical interns who get medical degrees awarded to students who have not qualified, in exchange for money. All this needs a thorough investigation. There must be transparency.
No government can come across as insensitive on the issue of crime against women. The Mamata Banerjee government should ensure that the guilty—if there are more than one—are caught and no allegation of cover-up is hurled at her government. That is the least she can do to give justice to the young woman who lost her life in such a gruesome manner.