Kolkata rape-murder case: Sealdah Court orders CBI custody of Former RG Kar principal, Tala PS OC till Sept 17
Sep 15, 2024
Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], September 15 : The Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate of Sealdah Court on Sunday ordered the police custody of former RG Kar Medical College principal Dr Sandip Ghosh and Tala Police Station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Abhijit Mondol to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the rape and murder case at the medical college and hospital on August 9.
The court ordered the police custody of both suspects until September 17.
During the hearing, the CBI lawyer stated that the agency had obtained call detail records (CDR) between Mondol and Ghosh on the night of the incident and suggested a possible nexus between the two, which they needed to investigate. "We want to confront both of them," the CBI lawyer said.
The lawyer further argued that the case should have been handled more carefully, emphasising that OC Mondol was being treated as a suspect rather than a police officer.
"It was a case of sexual assault, and they should have approached it cautiously. Mondol conspired with others... There is no conflict between the CBI and the police. We just want to uncover the truth. For us, he is not a police officer; he is a suspect," the lawyer added.
The CBI lawyer also accused Mondol of downplaying the case as a suicide and failing in his duties.
"He was obligated to register the FIR. They tried to pass it off as a suicide. There was a clear dereliction of duty. Custodial interrogation of both individuals is necessary," the lawyer said.
In response, the defence lawyer questioned the grounds for arrest, stating that it was mandatory to provide such grounds, especially if the aim was to uncover a potential conspiracy.
"The public prosecutor said he is not an accused but that they need to uncover a nexus... There is no valid ground for arrest here. At most, this is an alleged dereliction of duty," he said.
Both suspects were later taken to the CBI Special Crime Branch Office at the CGO Complex in Salt Lake.
Earlier, Ghosh and Mondol were arrested by the CBI on Saturday in connection with the rape and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor in Kolkata.
This development comes amid growing pressure on the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government over the brutal rape-murder case.
