New Delhi: “Blanket orders” cannot be passed to protect doctors involved in protests in the aftermath of the rape and murder of a post graduate trainee at Kolkata’s state-run R G Kar Medical College and Hospital, the Supreme Court said on Wednesday.
The bench of Justice M M Sundresh and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma observed that any such order would amount to interference with the authority of the police. The Court also observed that the matter cannot be heard “piecemeal”, and said it was inclined to transfer the matter to the Calcutta High Court.
“We are grappling with so many things and there is no end to this. It is easier for the Calcutta High Court to monitor protests. Is it possible for us to monitor the protests in Kolkata sitting in Delhi? “How can we pass blanket orders protecting doctors? The police have a right to call you,” the bench observed orally.
Senior advocate Karuna Nundy, representing the Association of junior and senior doctors, was then directed to submit a table of matters pending before the Calcutta High Court.
Submitting that protesting doctors were being harassed by the police and called for interrogation repeatedly, Nundy sought directions from the apex court that protection be given to the doctors.
The matter will now be heard after winter vacations.
The body of the PG trainee was recovered from the hospital’s seminar room on August 9, 2024. Sanjay Roy, a Kolkata Police civic volunteer, was arrested the next day. On January 20, a Kolkata trial court awarded him “life term imprisonment till death” in the case. The heinous crime triggered nationwide outrage and prolonged protests in West Bengal.
Several doctors’ organisations have claimed a larger conspiracy in the matter, claiming the investigation to be an eyewash.
The Apex court, even after the primary conviction, is monitoring multiple ancillary issues, including regularising the unauthorised absence of doctors.
While taking suo motu notice of the case, the Court constituted a National Task Force (NTF) on August 20 last year to formulate a protocol to ensure safety and security of medical professionals in the wake of the crime.
The NTF in its report — part of the Central government’s affidavit — said a separate central law to deal with offences against healthcare professionals was not required. State laws had adequate provisions to address minor offences besides serious ones under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
The NTF also said 24 states had enacted laws to address violence against health care professionals while defining the terms “health care institutions” and “medical professionals”.
The case was transferred to the CBI on August 13, 2024, after the Calcutta High Court expressed dissatisfaction over the investigation by Kolkata Police.
The top court subsequently assumed oversight of the matter on August 19, 2024.
