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Sandip Ghosh, West Bengal cop delayed probe into Kolkata rape-murder case: CBI
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has alleged that Sandip Ghosh deliberately avoided insisting on the registration of a FIR after the victim’s body was found.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has alleged that Sandip Ghosh, the former principal of RG Kar hospital in Kolkata when a doctor there was allegedly raped and murdered last month, deliberately avoided insisting on the registration of a first information report (FIR) immediately on August 9, when the body was found. Instead, he proposed a suicide theory despite visible external injuries on the victim’s body, the agency stated in its remand note seeking his custody from a local court.
According to the CBI, polygraph and layered voice analysis tests conducted by the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) suggested Ghosh was “deceptive” on certain crucial aspects of the incident.
These claims were presented by the federal anti-corruption probe agency before a Sealdah court on Sunday while seeking Ghosh’s custody after naming him and the former station house officer (SHO) Abhijit Mondal of the local police in a destruction of evidence case that the agency filed on Saturday in connection with rape and murder.
The body of the 31-year-old doctor was discovered in a semi-nude condition in the seminar room of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on the morning of August 9. Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer, has been arrested as the sole accused in the crime.
According to the CBI’s court document, seen by HT, Ghosh, as the head of the medical college, received information about the rape and murder at 9.58am on August 9 but failed to arrive at the hospital promptly.
The agency stated, “He did not make a formal complaint immediately, rather he made a vague complaint at a later stage through the medical superintendent-cum-Vice Principal, even after the victim was declared dead at 12.44pm on August 9.”
Despite the victim being a staff member of his college, the CBI claims Ghosh “did not try to get an FIR lodged immediately, rather a new theory of suicide was introduced, which is not possible given the external injuries visible on the victim’s body.”
The CBI added, “The principal’s actions suggest that he intentionally did not insist on registering an FIR despite consulting with an advocate.”
Detailing Ghosh’s attempts to downplay the rape and murder as suicide, the CBI alleged that he contacted Mondal, the in charge of the local police station, at 10.03am and an advocate at 1.40pm but failed to meet the doctor’s family.
“As head of the medical college, he failed to ensure timely completion of all hospital formalities, instead directing his subordinates to send the body directly to the morgue,” the CBI note added.
Regarding Mondal’s role, the CBI stated that he received information about the incident at 10.03am but failed to reach the crime scene promptly, arriving at the hospital at 11am.
The agency alleged that the General Diary (GD) entry at the police station intentionally recorded incorrect information, stating that the “body of PG trainee was found lying in an unconscious state at the seminar room of chest-medicine,” when in fact, a doctor had already examined the body and declared her dead.
Furthermore, Mondal allegedly failed to cordon off the crime scene, allowing unauthorised access and potentially compromising vital evidence.
The CBI claimed that Mondal’s actions were “trying to protect the accused Sanjay Roy and others had unauthorised access to the scene of crime, which may have resulted in tampering with the evidence.”
The agency also highlighted a 14-hour delay in registering the FIR, stating that “Mondal failed to ensure registration of FIR despite having a telephonic conversation at 10.03am, a written complaint from the medical superintendent at 2.55pm, and a subsequent complaint from the father at 7.30pm, only registering the case at 11.30pm.”
Additionally, Mondal allegedly failed to ensure proper videography of the evidence collection process as required by the Bharatiya Nyaya Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), potentially benefiting the accused Sanjay Roy and other unknown persons or suspects, the agency stated.
The officer also reportedly allowed the cremation of the trainee doctor’s body in a “hurried manner” despite the family’s specific request for a second autopsy.
Finally, the CBI noted an unnecessary two-day delay in seizing Roy’s clothes and belongings, even though his role in the rape-murder had been established on August 10.
