Former director of Calcutta hospital where doctor was raped arrested

Sandip Ghosh, the former director of the Kolkata hospital where a doctor was raped and murdered last month, was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) after a marathon two-week interrogation. The arrest was made in connection with allegations of financial irregularities during his tenure, which are being investigated by the central agency in parallel with the rape and murder case.

Besides Sandip Ghosh, three other people were arrested. According to sources, they are Biplav Singha and Suman Hazara, vendors who supplied medicines to the hospital, and Afsar Ali, a security guard.

Sandip Ghosh’s role as principal of RG Kar Medical College, where the doctor’s body was discovered on the morning of August 9, has been questioned by many. Even the Supreme Court had questioned why he, the head of the institution, had not immediately filed a first-degree report, reports NDTV.

His transfer to another hospital, hours after he resigned from his post under pressure from public opinion, had sent a second shockwave, with the role of the state government also attracting attention. The Calcutta High Court had sharply criticised the government and suggested that Sandip Ghosh should take a long leave instead of retiring from his post.

The CBI, which took over the rape and murder case on the orders of the Calcutta High Court, had started questioning Sandip Ghosh on August 16. Each session lasted for 10 to 14 hours.

After the case of financial irregularities was also referred to the authority by the Supreme Court, it conducted a search at his house on August 25. Asked late in the evening if they had collected any evidence, an official replied: “A lot.” The former headmaster was subjected to two rounds of lie detector tests.

As the protests escalated, former deputy director of RG Kar Hospital Akhtar Ali filed an appeal in the Supreme Court, urging the Enforcement Directorate to investigate the alleged financial misconduct.

In his appeal, Akhtar Ali Sandip had accused Ghosh of illegally selling unclaimed dead bodies, trading in biomedical waste and participating in tenders in return for commission from drug and medical equipment suppliers. He also alleged that students were pressurised to pay between Rs 500,000 and Rs 800,000 to pass exams.

Sandip Ghosh has already been suspended by the Indian Medical Council. His appointment to the leading Calcutta National Medical College also proved to be a failure: the students locked him out of the rector’s office long before the Supreme Court’s decision.

The arrest of Sandip Ghosh has not appeased doctors or civil society in Bengal, who have been on the warpath since the young doctor’s body was discovered on August 9, demanding the resignation of Calcutta Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal.

Despite the TMC government’s attempts to destroy evidence, his (Sandip Ghosh’s) corruption and misdeeds will soon be exposed. “The people of Bengal have a right to the truth and this arrest is a crucial step in that direction,” Bengal BJP leader Sukanta Majumdar said in a video message posted on X (formerly Twitter).