Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, while hearing the Kolkata doctor's rape and murder case, observed on Tuesday that if women are not able to go to work and the conditions are not safe, "we are denying them equality".
CJI Chandrachud said the matter was not just about a particular rape issue in a hospital, but it deals with the systemic issue of safety of doctors across India.
"We know they are all interns, resident doctors and most importantly women doctors....most of the young doctors are putting in 36 hours ....we must evolve a national protocol to ensure safe conditions of work are provided," he observed, according to Live Law.
"If women are not able to go to work and conditions are not safe, we are denying them equality," he added.
Also read: Kolkata rape-murder: Why were doctor's parents made to wait for 3 hours? CBI interrogates ex-principal Sandip Ghosh
The Supreme Court termed the doctor's rape and murder in the state-run RG Kar hospital "horrific" and "horrendous". It pulled up the West Bengal government over the delay in the registration of FIR.
{{/usCountry}}The Supreme Court termed the doctor's rape and murder in the state-run RG Kar hospital "horrific" and "horrendous". It pulled up the West Bengal government over the delay in the registration of FIR.
{{/usCountry}}The court has proposed setting up a national task force to frame guidelines for ensuring safety and protection of medical professionals across the country.
The court also appealed to the protesting doctors to return to work.
"We want them to trust us. Their safety and protection is a matter of highest national concern," the court added.
The court also expressed concerns over the fact that the name of the victim, the photographs and videos were all over the media.
Also read: Kolkata doctor rape-murder: Victim's father says ‘not possible for one person’
CJI Chandrachud said the principal tried to pass the murder off as suicide and the parents were not allowed to see the body.
The trainee doctor was found murdered inside the seminar hall of the state-run hospital in Kolkata. Autopsy revealed she was subjected to forceful penetration, which indicated sexual assault.
Follow live updates on the Supreme Court's hearing
The woman had gone to the hall to rest amid her 36-hour-long shift in the hospital. The police have arrested a civic volunteer named Sanjoy Roy for allegedly committing the grisly murder.
The Central Bureau of Investigation has been grilling the ex-principal of the hospital, Dr Sandip Ghosh, to find out if a larger conspiracy led to the rape and murder. The agency has asked the doctor why he showed the body of the victim to her parents after a delay of three hours.