Kolkata rape-murder case: What SC said on government notification that barred women for doing night duties The Supreme Court on Tuesday said that the West Bengal Government cannot stop women doctors from working on night shifts. A bench led by Chief Justice of DY Chandrachud and also comprising justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra made these remarks when it was informed about the West Government decision to prevent women on working night shifts and beyond 12 hours. The court made these remarks when it was hearing on suo motu petition on the rape and murder of a doctor in state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, West Bengal The court questioned the West Bengal Government notification that barred women for doing night duties and women doctors cannot working beyond a 12-hour-shift.

What the CBI has revealed in the report is really disturbing. What you are flagging is of utmost concern. We ourselves are concerned, CBI has flagged it for us. We are ourselves disturbed by what we have read," the top court told a lawyer who claimed discrepancies in the seizure list and sketch of the crime scene. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra also asked the protesting junior doctors in West Bengal to resume work and recorded the assurance from the state government that it will not take any adverse or punitive action against them.

Kolkata rape-murder case: SC says CBI status report on Kolkata rape-murder case 'disturbing' The Supreme Court on Tuesday said it was disturbed by the findings given in a status report filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the rape and murder of trainee doctor at R G Kar government hospital in Kolkata but refused to divulge the details, saying any disclosure may jeopardise the ongoing investigation. Seeking a status report from the CBI on its probe into financial irregularities allegedly committed by jailed former principal of R G Kar Medical College and Hospital Sandip Ghosh, the top court, referring to the rape and murder case, said the agency is not "sleeping over" the investigation and it needs to be given time to "unearth the truth."

Verma established his reputation as a formidable police officer during one of the most challenging periods in Bengal's history - the Maoist insurgency that affected the district and the entire Junglemahal region in the late 2000s. When he took over as the SP in 2008, the Maoists had deeply entrenched themselves in significant parts of the region, effectively creating a near-parallel authority. To combat the Maoist threat, Verma adopted a strategy that combined firmness with community engagement. Although his operational methods often faced criticism, particularly from political opponents, they proved effective in systematically dismantling the Maoist stronghold in the district.

Manoj Verma: Troubleshooter, anti-Maoist insurgency expert takes charge of Kolkata Police In the fall of 2010, as political tides were turning in West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, the opposition leader and then railway minister, strongly criticized Manoj Verma, the police chief of Paschim Medinipur. She accused him of being a "CPM agent" due to his actions against opposition activities and pledged to force him to apologise once she came to power. Now, in 2024, Banerjee, who has been the chief minister of West Bengal for three consecutive terms, has appointed Verma as the commissioner of Kolkata Police. The appointment comes at a time when the police force is under scrutiny for its alleged mismanagement of the high-profile R G Kar hospital rape-murder case.

Kolkata rape-murder case: Court extends ex-RG Kar principal, cop's custody by 3 days CBI custody of RG Kar hospital's former principal Sandip Ghosh and police officer Abhijit Mondal extended by three days by Sealdah court. Ghosh and Mondal, the officer-in-charge of the Tala police station, were interrogated by the CBI on Monday and were asked to detail their activities on August 9 immediately after they got the news about the doctor being found dead at the hospital.

RG Kar issue: Protesting junior doctors hold meeting to take call on ongoing 'cease work' Agitating junior doctors in West Bengal held a meeting on Tuesday evening to decide on their ongoing 'cease work' and protests demanding justice for the woman medic, who was raped and murdered at RG Kar hospital last month. The governing body meeting of the medics, which started around 6.30 pm, is still underway, one of the protesting doctors said. "We are holding this meeting to decide on whether to continue with our 'cease work', as some of our demands have been fulfilled by the state government," he told PTI. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had on Monday night announced the removal of the Kolkata police commissioner, the director of health services and the director of medical education, giving in to the demands of the protesting junior doctors.

Bengal government anti-woman: Suvendu Adhikari Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari on Tuesday asserted that the "anti-woman" nature of the state government "stands exposed", following its recent circular that prescribed night duty avoidance for women doctors and capping their working hours to 12 hours at a time. Adhikari's comments came shortly after the Supreme Court on Tuesday took objection to the West Bengal government's 'Rattirer Saathi' programme, while hearing the rape-murder case of a woman doctor at state-run RG Kar hospital in Kolkata. After the top court's objection, the state government told the bench that it would withdraw the notification for women doctors. Adhikari said the programme was a "regressive" move and "discriminating". "How can the state differentiate between men and women? This government has failed to provide security to women, and by these actions, it is proving its anti-woman outlook," the senior BJP leader asserted.

Medics yet to take call on withdrawing 'cease work'; Manoj Verma appointed new Kolkata Police chief The agitating junior doctors are yet to decide on whether to call off their 'cease work' and rejoin work, despite the West Bengal government appointing senior IPS officer Manoj Kumar Verma as the new Kolkata Police commissioner, replacing Vineet Goyal, fulfilling one of the key demands of the protesters. The state government also removed Director of Health Services (DHS) Debashis Halder, Director of Medical Education (DME) Kaustav Nayak and Deputy Commissioner of Kolkata Police's North Division Abhishek Gupta, a day after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee held a meeting with the agitating medics and agreed to their demands in a bid to resolve the more than a month-long impasse over the RG Kar hospital incident.

Junior doctors, who are on 'cease work' protesting the rape-murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital for the last 39 days, have been demanding the removal of the Director of Health Services, Director of Medical Education and the Health secretary for their alleged involvement in corruption in the state health sector.