New Delhi

The Supreme Court on Tuesday (Sep 17) slammed the West Bengal government over its handling of the initial investigation into the murder rape of a junior doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. 

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The court said the details submitted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in its status report were "really disturbing" and that the court itself was troubled by it. 

“I won’t give details of the day here because it will dislocate the investigation. We don’t want someone to take advantage of it as a technical issue later on. But what the CBI has revealed in its status report is really disturbing," Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud presiding over a three-judge bench said.

"What you are flagging is of the utmost concern. So I can only share with you that we are ourselves disturbed by what we have (seen in the report)…and this is what the CBI itself has told us. They are themselves very concerned about the fact that this is what has happened."

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Watch | Kolkata Horror: CM Mamata Banerjee agrees to Indian doctors’ demands, removes Police Commissioner

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Evidence tampering 

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The CBI report highlighted the series of flaws in the investigation, including the fact that the victim's clothes were not even sent for the post-mortem. The bench came down heavily on the state and raised questions about evidence tampering and police complicity, leading to the arrest of the station house officer (SHO) of the area.

The court also slammed the Mamata Banerjee-led government for its August 19 notification that barred women doctors from working at night and for more than 12-hour shifts due to concerns over their safety. The bench labelled the decision as unconstitutional.

“How can you tell women doctors that they can’t work at night? Women don’t need concessions; they need equal opportunities," the bench said. 

"Whether it’s pilots, the armed forces, or police officers, women work round-the-clock, and you must provide the necessary security infrastructure."

Also read | Kolkata horror: Former RG Kar principal Sandip Ghosh’s polygraph results 'deceptive', says CBI

The apex court pulling up the state government came a day after Mamata announced that her administration had accepted the resignation of Commissioner of Police, Vineet Goyal after protesting doctors demanded it. 

The two earlier meetings with CM Banerjee failed as she and the doctors could not come to a consensus on whether the proceedings should be live streamed or videographed.

(With inputs from agencies)