Kolkata, India: rape, murder, rebellion

Featured image: March in Kolkata, Source: bbc

Tens of thousands in the state of West Bengal organized a massive march to protest the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at a government hospital in Kolkata last week.

On Friday, August 9, a female doctor fell asleep in the resting room after a 36-hour shift. The next morning, her colleagues found her half-naked, tortured and dead. It was claimed that a hospital employee was arrested regarding the crime.

March in Kolkata, Source: bbc

Tens of thousands marched responding to calls across the city of Kolkata and the whole federal state on Wednesday night, August 14. The police attacked the women with pepper gas. Protests were also held in other cities such as Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Pune.

Posted by Revolutionary Students' Front – RSF on Wednesday, August 14, 2024

The efforts of the police administration to cover up the gang-rape and murder have made it clear to all the people of the state, including the students, that the Trinamool Party (the governing Party in West Bengal) is behind this brutal crime. A senior Party leader or his family member is directly involved. In order to save the rapists and murderers, the college authorities have become active in demolishing the seminar hall to destroy the evidence as soon as the investigation is handed over to the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation).

Posted by Revolutionary Students' Front – RSF on Monday, August 12, 2024

It is important to note this revealing because it was broadly reported, e.g. by the bbc that “though protests were largely peaceful, they were marred by clashes between the police and a small group of unidentified men who barged into the RG Kar Hospital, the site of the doctor’s murder, and ransacked the emergency department” or calling it “hooliganism unleashed on protesting students”. This fairy tale is in accordance with the governments line to discredit and label the protests as “anti-people”.

Posted by Revolutionary Students' Front – RSF on Wednesday, August 14, 2024

On the midnight of 15th of August, when the entire state was on the streets demanding justice for the gang-rape and murder, Trinamool goons attacked the protesting doctors at the RG Kar Medical College. From smashing the stage of the movement, beating the protesting doctors and patients, vandalizing the hospital (the main purpose is actually to destroy the evidences), they even tried to enter the hostel of the students. During all these incidents the Calcutta Police acted as the de facto watchdog of the Trinamool gangsters. When the protestors around the RG Kar Medical College resisted the goons, the Mamata Banerjee-turned-police force batton-charged the protestors and fired tear gas shells at them. Several protesters were injured. Police vehicles were attacked. It was reported that the Kolkata police have arrested 19 people.

On August 16, doctors from many government hospitals, across the state and at national level, called for a strike to demand exemplary punishment for the incident, the culprits and the hiding by close associates of the Trinamool. As a result the entire country’s medical system was brought to a standstill. It was reported that at least one million doctors went on strike today.

Doctors on strike, Source: bbc, The Independent

It was stated by the Revolutionary Students’ Front, that in India, a rape occurs every six minutes. Many cases of women abuse and molestation occur. It is important to uproot the seeds of rape culture and patriarchy in our society. The Revolutionary Student Front supports the movement of doctors and students seeking justice for the RG Kar Medical College incident, and calling for the formation of a militant mass movement along the lines of Naxalbari to confront the thugs and to carry forward the anti-patriarchy struggle, with the aim of radical change in society.

Posted by Revolutionary Students' Front – RSF on Friday, August 16, 2024

Additionally, it has come to light that the “mysterious deaths” of doctors of various medical colleges have been termed as suicides by the college authorities and the police. Rather, patients are even more likely to be victims of such situations. So this movement is not only for doctors, this movement is the movement of every patient and their family members, the movement of all states and the whole people.

আজ (১৬/০৮/২০২৪) যাদবপুর বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ে বিপ্লবী ছাত্র ফ্রন্টের তরফ থেকে বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় শাটডাউন কর্মসূচির সমর্থনে প্রচার কর্মসূচি।

Posted by Revolutionary Students' Front – RSF on Friday, August 16, 2024

There were also calls for a total campus shutdown at the Jadavpur University, demanding the resign of CM for compliance in shielding perpetrators of brutal rape and murder in RGKMC, the stringent punishment for raggers and murderers of Swapno, against henious repression and attack on protesting medicos and civil society by TMC-goon-police nexus and against the police conspiracy of tagging Dr. Anubhab and other protesting medicos as “hooligans” and issuing lockout orders.

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