Rape and Murder of Kolkata Trainee Doctor: A Brutal Indictment of Our Crumbling System

Harshita Rai
New Delhi, 13th August. The gruesome rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at Kolkata’s renowned RG Kar Medical College and Hospital is not just another statistic in a country that has grown numb to violence against women—it’s a chilling reminder of how our society, law enforcement, and government have failed us all.

The post-mortem report lays bare the brutality of the crime: the accused, Sanjoy Roy, a civic volunteer, hit her so viciously that the glasses she wore shattered, driving shards into her eyes. This wasn’t just an act of violence—it was a monstrous display of barbarism. The fact that such a heinous crime could occur in the heart of a state-run medical institution is a damning indictment of the security and safety protocols that are supposed to protect us, especially women.

But the outrage doesn’t stop at the crime itself. The post-mortem reveals more—a catalogue of injuries inflicted upon the young doctor, her body a canvas of pain and horror. Cuts and bruises marred her hands and face, clear evidence that she fought back against her attacker. The shards of glass from her spectacles likely caused the severe eye injuries, a cruel irony that something meant to aid her vision became a tool in her torture.

Worse still, the report confirms that these injuries were inflicted while she was still alive. She was raped, brutalized, and then murdered—her life snuffed out by throttling and smothering. The time of death, estimated between 3 and 5 am on that fateful Friday, paints a picture of a long, drawn-out ordeal that no one should ever have to endure.

And where was the system meant to protect her? Where were the safeguards that should have prevented a man like Sanjoy Roy from even stepping foot into the seminar hall? This man, who had no official association with the hospital, was free to roam, free to commit an act of unspeakable violence. The police, in their standard operating procedure, have arrested him, but this does little to restore faith in a system that allowed such a horror to happen in the first place.

After committing this atrocity, Roy went home and slept—slept!—as if nothing had happened. He washed his clothes, likely in an attempt to erase the evidence of his crime, and carried on as if the life he had just destroyed was of no consequence. The sheer audacity and lack of remorse are as shocking as the crime itself.

The murder has sparked widespread protests, as it should. But protests alone are not enough. The doctors halting elective services in cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and Kolkata are taking a stand, but what we need is systemic change. We need a government and law enforcement that doesn’t just react to these crimes but prevents them. We need security measures that actually protect, not just placate.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s ultimatum to the Kolkata Police to solve the case by Sunday, or face a CBI investigation, is a hollow gesture if it is not backed by real, systemic change. The fact that such an ultimatum is even necessary highlights the deep mistrust that the public has in our law enforcement agencies. If we cannot trust the police to bring justice in such a clear-cut case, what hope do we have for the countless other women whose stories never make it to the headlines?

This is not just a crime against one woman; it’s a crime against every woman who dares to dream, who dares to live her life in a country that continually fails to protect her. It’s a brutal indictment of our crumbling system, one that seems more interested in passing the buck than taking real, meaningful action.

It is time for more than just protests. It is time for accountability, for real, tangible change in how we deal with crimes against women. It is time to stop treating these cases as isolated incidents and start recognizing them for what they are—a symptom of a much larger, much more dangerous disease that threatens the very fabric of our society.

Until we do, we will continue to fail our women. And the blood of every innocent woman who falls victim to such brutality will be on our hands.