The body of a postgraduate trainee doctor was discovered in the seminar hall of the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata in the early hours of August 9. The circumstances surrounding her death have since ignited a nationwide uproar.
The series of phone calls that gradually informed her parents of the incident paint a haunting picture of how the rape-murder of the young medic was initially portrayed as a suicide.In the first call, the anxious voice on the other end was insistent yet vague.
Call 1:
Father: Who is speaking?
Caller: I am calling from RG Kar hospital.
Father: What has happened?
Caller: She is unwell. Can you come immediately?
Father: But why, what has happened?
Caller: She is unwell. She has been admitted? Can you come immediately?
Father: But what has happened, at least tell us?
Caller: That doctor will say. I was given your number and asked to inform the family.
Father: But please tell us what has happened.
Caller: Patient is unwell, please come as soon as possible. Rest doctor will inform you.
Mother: Does she have a fever?
Caller: You all just come soon, as soon as possible.
Father: Is her condition not good?
Caller: The condition is bad, please come as soon as possible.
The lack of clarity and urgency in the initial call from the caller identifying herself as the assistant superintendent of the hospital mirrored the grim reality that awaited her family.
The second call, coming from a visibly stressed caller, brought a shift in the gravity of the situation.
Call 2:
Father: But please tell me what has happened?
Caller: Her condition is very bad. Please come as soon as possible.
Father: But what has happened?
Caller: That the doctor will tell, please come soon.
Father: Who are you?
Caller: I am assistant super, I am not a doctor.
Father: Is there no doctor there?
Caller: We have brought your daughter to the Emergency. You come and contact us.
Mother: But what happened to her? She was on duty.
Caller: You just come quickly, as soon as possible.
The second call only compounded the family’s growing horror, with no real answers to the burning questions that plagued them.
The final call was the most harrowing of all. The reality of their worst fears was confirmed in a heartbreaking message.
Call 3:
Caller: I was telling you earlier. The matter is that your daughter has died by suicide. She is dead. Police are here, we are all here, please come as soon as possible.
Father: Yes
Caller: The matter is that your daughter has probably died by suicide. She is dead, police are here, we are all here, please come as soon as possible.
The revelation of the young doctor’s death by alleged ‘suicide’ came as a brutal shock to her family, who had been desperately seeking information about her. The ambiguity and coldness of the communication only deepened their anguish. It was later found out that the case being dismissed as ‘suicide’ was actually a case of rape and murder as the investigation revealed.
The case, initially handled by the Kolkata Police, has been transferred to the CBI. Civic volunteer Sanjoy Roy has been arrested, and both the former principal of RG Kar Medical College, Sandip Ghosh, and Roy have undergone polygraph tests as part of the ongoing investigation.
The tragic death has spurred unprecedented protests across the nation. As the longest-running doctors’ protest since the 1980s unfolds, the outcry against the alleged rape-murder has brought to light severe issues within the healthcare system.
The series of phone calls that gradually informed her parents of the incident paint a haunting picture of how the rape-murder of the young medic was initially portrayed as a suicide.In the first call, the anxious voice on the other end was insistent yet vague.
Call 1:
Father: Who is speaking?
Caller: I am calling from RG Kar hospital.
Father: What has happened?
Caller: She is unwell. Can you come immediately?
Father: But why, what has happened?
Caller: She is unwell. She has been admitted? Can you come immediately?
Father: But what has happened, at least tell us?
Caller: That doctor will say. I was given your number and asked to inform the family.
Father: But please tell us what has happened.
Caller: Patient is unwell, please come as soon as possible. Rest doctor will inform you.
Mother: Does she have a fever?
Caller: You all just come soon, as soon as possible.
Father: Is her condition not good?
Caller: The condition is bad, please come as soon as possible.
The lack of clarity and urgency in the initial call from the caller identifying herself as the assistant superintendent of the hospital mirrored the grim reality that awaited her family.
The second call, coming from a visibly stressed caller, brought a shift in the gravity of the situation.
Call 2:
Father: But please tell me what has happened?
Caller: Her condition is very bad. Please come as soon as possible.
Father: But what has happened?
Caller: That the doctor will tell, please come soon.
Father: Who are you?
Caller: I am assistant super, I am not a doctor.
Father: Is there no doctor there?
Caller: We have brought your daughter to the Emergency. You come and contact us.
Mother: But what happened to her? She was on duty.
Caller: You just come quickly, as soon as possible.
The second call only compounded the family’s growing horror, with no real answers to the burning questions that plagued them.
The final call was the most harrowing of all. The reality of their worst fears was confirmed in a heartbreaking message.
Call 3:
Caller: I was telling you earlier. The matter is that your daughter has died by suicide. She is dead. Police are here, we are all here, please come as soon as possible.
Father: Yes
Caller: The matter is that your daughter has probably died by suicide. She is dead, police are here, we are all here, please come as soon as possible.
The revelation of the young doctor’s death by alleged ‘suicide’ came as a brutal shock to her family, who had been desperately seeking information about her. The ambiguity and coldness of the communication only deepened their anguish. It was later found out that the case being dismissed as ‘suicide’ was actually a case of rape and murder as the investigation revealed.
The case, initially handled by the Kolkata Police, has been transferred to the CBI. Civic volunteer Sanjoy Roy has been arrested, and both the former principal of RG Kar Medical College, Sandip Ghosh, and Roy have undergone polygraph tests as part of the ongoing investigation.
The tragic death has spurred unprecedented protests across the nation. As the longest-running doctors’ protest since the 1980s unfolds, the outcry against the alleged rape-murder has brought to light severe issues within the healthcare system.