Bengal govt forms SIT to probe RG Kar Medical College on financial issues

West Bengal government has formed an SIT to investigate financial irregularities at RG Kar Medical College amid ongoing protests over trainee doctor's alleged rape and murder

The West Bengal government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe alleged financial irregularities at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, where the body of a postgraduate trainee doctor was found earlier this month. The SIT will investigate financial irregularities at the hospital from January 2021 to the present. The team is expected to submit its findings within a month.

The four-member SIT will be led by Dr Pranav Kumar, IG of the Swami Vivekananda State Police Academy, and will include DIG Murshidabad Range Waquar Reza, DIG state CID Soma Das Mitra, and Kolkata Police DC Central Indira Mukherjee. The team has been granted the authority to access any documents from government departments and private agencies necessary for their investigation.

The decision, formalised through a notification issued by the state’s Home Department on August 16, comes amid widespread protests and investigations related to the alleged rape and murder of the doctor.

CBI granted permission for polygraph test on accused

Meanwhile, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is actively investigating the alleged rape and murder of the trainee doctor at the same institution. The CBI has been granted permission to conduct a polygraph test on the accused arrested in connection with the case.

Protests continue for 12th day in West Bengal

The alleged incident has sparked nationwide outrage, with prominent figures from the Bengal music industry, including actor Saheb Chatterjee and radio personality Mir Afsar Ali, joining the protests on Monday. Medics across the country have been demanding justice for the victim, as well as legislation for better security measures in healthcare settings.
 

Healthcare services in West Bengal have been severely impacted, with junior doctors at state-run hospitals entering the 12th day of a ceasework agitation in protest of the incident. Senior doctors and assistant professors have been stepping in to manage patient care at outpatient departments (OPDs), but long queues of patients have been reported at several facilities.
 

The Supreme Court of India, led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, has also taken note of the case and is scheduled to hear the matter on Tuesday.

[With agency inputs]