Medical students hold posters as they attend a protest against what they say was rape and murder of a trainee doctor, inside the premises of R G Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata, India, August 13, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
The Barrackpore City Police has registered an FIR in connection with the cremation of the doctor who was sexually assaulted and murdered at the R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata two years ago.
The FIR was lodged three days after West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari asked the police to register a fresh complaint regarding why the victim was hurriedly cremated without the consent of the family.
Addressing a gathering on August 9 to mark the second death anniversary of the doctor, the Chief Minister said the cremation at the burning ghat was originally scheduled as the third, but was subsequently advanced to the first position, leading to the body being cremated in haste.
Parents of the victim, including her mother and now Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Panihati, Ratna Debnath, were present at the event where the Chief Minister made the announcement.
Fresh complaint
The victim’s father said he has named three persons in the fresh complaint. He filed a written complaint with the Barrackpore Police Commissionerate on Monday, August 10, following which an FIR was registered at the Khardah police station late that night.
The new case includes allegations of criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence, among other serious charges. The police will investigate the circumstances surrounding the cremation of the victim at the Natagarh Kadamtala crematorium under the Ghola police station.
The police will investigate the role of former Panihati Trinamool Congress MLA and former chief whip of the West Bengal Assembly, Nirmal Ghosh, former municipal chairman Somnath Dey and neighbour Sanjib Mukherjee in the cremation process. Mr. Ghosh was a key Trinamool Congress leader and his son, Tirthankar Ghosh, contested on a Trinamool Congress ticket against Ms. Debnath and lost in the recently concluded Assembly polls.
In an unrelated incident, Tirthankar Ghosh was arrested in July 2026 for extortion and criminal intimidation.
The fresh police probe will run separately from the investigation being conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the case.
The central agency was handed over investigation into the rape and murder by the Calcutta High Court. The CBI has filed a charge sheet against a former civil police volunteer for sexual assault and murder. The agency is also probing financial irregularities at the hospital. After the change of regime in West Bengal, the CBI has also stepped up its investigation in the case.
Published – August 11, 2026 11:27 pm IST
