Kolkata: Ratna Debnath, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Panihati and mother of the postgraduate trainee doctor raped and murdered at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in August 2024, has expressed dissatisfaction with the progress of the investigation and alleged that corruption in West Bengal's medical colleges continues despite a change of government.
Debnath said she would approach Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari to seek action over alleged irregularities in medical institutions and press for justice in the RG Kar case.
"Even though there has been a change in government, the same people are still around. Corruption has not come down," she told reporters on Sunday, according to the Press Trust of India (PTI).
Questioning the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) handling of the case, Debnath said her family had never sought an investigation by the central agency and alleged that the probe had failed to make sufficient progress.
"If they cannot do the job, they should step aside," she said.
The victim's parents have repeatedly questioned the investigation, maintaining that those they believe were involved in the crime have not all been brought to justice. The case was transferred from Kolkata Police to the CBI following an order by the Calcutta High Court, which took suo motu cognisance of the matter.
Debnath also said she had received files relating to alleged corruption in different medical colleges and wanted the allegations investigated. She said she would take up the matter with the chief minister.
Her remarks come as the CBI continues to face questions over aspects of the case beyond the original trial, including allegations of a wider conspiracy and attempts to suppress evidence. A separate investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crime and the cremation is being monitored by the Calcutta High Court.
Ratna Debnath entered public life following the rape and murder at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in August 2024. The incident triggered widespread protests across West Bengal and other parts of the country, with doctors and citizens demanding accountability, safer workplaces for women and reforms in public healthcare institutions.
She joined the BJP, saying she believed that securing justice would be difficult without a change of government in West Bengal. The party fielded her from Panihati in the 2026 Assembly election, which she won.
As an elected representative, Debnath has continued to raise questions about the investigation and alleged irregularities in medical colleges. Her recent remarks extend those concerns to the functioning of the CBI and the persistence of alleged corruption within the state's medical education system.
She has said she intends to place before Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari files relating to alleged corruption in medical colleges and seek action. These allegations have not been established through the statements cited in the present report.
August 9, 2024: The body of a postgraduate trainee doctor was found inside the seminar room of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. The incident prompted a police investigation and widespread public outrage.
August 10, 2024: Kolkata Police arrested civic volunteer Sanjay Roy in connection with the rape and murder.
August 13, 2024: The Calcutta High Court transferred the investigation from Kolkata Police to the CBI, citing concerns over the handling of the case and the need for an independent investigation.
August 20, 2024: The Supreme Court took suo motu cognisance of the incident and examined issues relating to the investigation and the safety of medical professionals.
October 7, 2024: The CBI filed a chargesheet against Sanjay Roy in the rape-and-murder case.
November 12, 2024: The trial began at the Sealdah court in Kolkata.
January 18, 2025: The Sealdah court convicted Sanjay Roy of rape and murder.
January 20, 2025: The court sentenced Roy to imprisonment for the remainder of his life. It did not impose the death penalty, ruling that the case did not meet the legal threshold for the rarest of rare category.
May 21, 2026: The Calcutta High Court ordered a three-member CBI Special Investigation Team (SIT) to examine allegations of a wider conspiracy and attempts to suppress the case. The team was directed to examine the sequence of events from the night of August 9, 2024, until the cremation the following evening.
June 25, 2026: The High Court expressed dissatisfaction with the progress report submitted by the SIT and sought a more conclusive account of the investigation.
August 28, 2026: The High Court directed the CBI to submit a report within three weeks, explaining the basis on which investigators had identified the possible involvement of certain persons in the alleged conspiracy.
September 24, 2026: The CBI submitted a report in a sealed cover to the Calcutta High Court. The bench scheduled further arguments for November 20. The contents of the report were not made public.
October 2, 2026: The Calcutta High Court transferred to the CBI an investigation registered by Khardah police into allegations surrounding the cremation. The court directed the local police to hand over the relevant records to the CBI's court-monitored SIT.
The conviction of Sanjay Roy in January 2025 concluded the trial against him for the rape and murder. However, the victim's parents continued to raise questions about the circumstances surrounding the crime, including alleged lapses in the initial investigation and possible attempts to suppress evidence.
In May 2026, the Calcutta High Court ordered a separate CBI SIT investigation into the sequence of events from the night of the crime until the cremation. The inquiry was intended to examine the parents' allegations and the possibility of a wider conspiracy.
The court subsequently sought further details from the agency about the progress of the investigation. On September 24, the CBI submitted a report in a sealed cover. Its contents have not been made public, and the court scheduled the matter for further arguments on November 20.
A separate dispute over the cremation also reached the High Court. The victim's father had alleged that the cremation was carried out in haste to destroy evidence. These are allegations, not established findings. On October 2, the High Court transferred the related investigation from Khardah police to the CBI, directing the state agency to hand over its records.
The continuing proceedings therefore concern questions that go beyond the conviction in the original trial. They do not, by themselves, establish the involvement of additional persons in the crime or prove that evidence was deliberately destroyed.
(With inputs from PTI, The Indian Express, The Print and The Times of India)