Kolkata rape-murder: CBI nabs former RG Kar principal over financial irregularities

Kolkata: The CBI on Monday arrested the former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, Dr Sandip Ghosh, in connection with the alleged financial misconduct at the establishment, officials said.

Ghosh was questioned for the 15th day at the agency's Salt Lake office over the alleged rape and murder of the RG Kar hospital post-graduate trainee on August 9. He was later escorted to the CBI's Nizam Palace office in Kolkata, which houses the agency's anti-corruption wing, and was shown as arrested.

This is the second arrest in the ghastly RG Kar crime fallout scenario that took place 24 days after the crime was committed. Earlier, a Kolkata Police civic volunteer, Sanjoy Roy, was arrested by the Kolkata Police and handed over to the central agency in connection with the medic's alleged rape and murder.

On August 23, the Calcutta High Court ordered the transfer of the probe into the alleged financial irregularities at RG Kar Hospital from a state-constituted Special Investigation Team (SIT) to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The direction came in response to a petition by the former deputy superintendent of the facility, Dr Akhtar Ali, who prayed for a probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) into multiple counts of alleged financial misconduct at the state-run institute during the tenure of its former principal.

Ghosh served as principal of RG Kar Medical College from February 2021 to September 2023. He was transferred from RG Kar in October of that year but inexplicably returned to that position within a month. He held his position at the hospital till the day the hospital doctor was found murdered.

Ali had moved the High Court amid fervent speculations in the public domain on whether the alleged rampant corruption at the institution was in any way connected to the RG Kar medic's death, with possibilities of the victim remaining privy to those and threatening exposure.

Ali had also alleged that his complaints before the state vigilance commission and anti-corruption bureau filed over a year ago against Ghosh yielded little results and led to his own transfer from the institution.

In his plea before the high court, Ali accused Ghosh of illegal sale of unclaimed corpses, trafficking of biomedical waste and passing tenders against commission paid by medicine and medical equipment suppliers. Ali also alleged that students were pressured to pay amounts ranging between Rs.5 and 8 lakhs to pass exams.

The former principal was asked to go on leave by the state government after the murder of the trainee doctor came to light. The agitating junior doctors have stuck to their demand to suspend the accused office pending inquiry, and protestors across social and political circles of the state have accused the Mamata Banerjee administration of shielding Ghosh by not issuing a suspension order.

A day after the corruption case was transferred to the CBI, the agency, on August 24, named Ghosh in an FIR and slapped section 120B of the IPC (criminal conspiracy), which is to be read with section 420 of the IPC (cheating and dishonesty) and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

The cases read together account for cognizable offences and are non-bailable in nature, a senior Calcutta High Court lawyer confirmed. Besides Ghosh, the CBI also registered cases against one M/s Ma Tara Traders of Madhya Jorehat, Banipur, Howrah, M/s Eshan Caf of 4/1, H/1, JK Ghosh Road, Belgachhia, Kolkata and one M/s Khama Louha.

The CBI on August 25 conducted a day-long search operation at Ghosh's Beliaghata residence in northeast Kolkata in connection with the corruption cases. Two rounds of polygraph tests were also conducted on him by the agency sleuths in connection with the rape and murder probe.