The parents of a junior doctor who was raped and murdered at Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital in August last year are still waiting for her death certificate. Despite repeated requests, they have not received the document.
The victim’s father said they had been struggling to get the certificate for months. He first spoke to the hospital’s medical superintendent and vice-principal (MSVP) last year. They assured him the certificate would be arranged. However, nothing happened.
Last month, he submitted a formal request. Again, he was promised the document within two days. But when he went to collect it, he was sent to the Borough office. Officials there refused, saying the hospital had to provide it.
When he approached the hospital again, the MSVP said special permission from the state health department was needed. Despite further assurances, the family is still waiting. “It has been nearly a month now, and we still do not have our daughter’s death certificate,” he said.
RG Kar Hospital officials confirmed they had written to the health department on Friday. They said they would update the family on Monday. But the father insisted he would demand a written explanation if the hospital failed again.
Also read: Cal HC denies State's plea against RG Kar convict's life sentence
The case sparked protests across India after the brutal attack on the trainee doctor on 9 August last year. The court sentenced the sole accused, Sanjoy Roy, to life imprisonment. However, the verdict stated the crime did not qualify as the “rarest of the rare” category.
The victim’s family continues to allege a cover-up. Her father claimed that when they arrived at the hospital, she was still alive but was deliberately kept away from them. He accused the authorities, including the then-Kolkata Police Commissioner, of waiting for her to die. “From the start, there were efforts to hide the truth,” he said.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is probing alleged negligence and cover-up by the police and hospital authorities. However, the agency failed to file a chargesheet within the required 90 days. This resulted in bail for former RG Kar Hospital principal Sandip Ghosh and local officer-in-charge Abhijit Mondal.
The victim’s father questioned why they were facing so many obstacles. “Are we wrong to demand justice? Are we wrong to ask for the Chief Minister’s resignation? Why are we being harassed?” he asked.
The family refuses to back down and continues to seek justice.
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