“I realise what I did was wrong, I realise my mistake now.” This is the statement made by one of the men arrested for the vandalism at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in the early hours of August 15 during protests over the brutal rape and murder of a doctor.
The Kolkata Police have so far arrested 30 people, between the ages of 19 and 34, for the vandalism at the hospital which also triggered political mudslinging. The police recently released photos and videos of the vandals, seeking help from the general public in identifying them. Sources say five of the accused arrested so far were caught with the public’s help. Most accused are from North Kolkata and Barrackpore Commissariat.
Soumik Das, a resident of East Sinthi area, is allegedly the one who broke the gate and vandalised the hospital. Following his arrest on Friday, Das said: “I went with my gym partner to protest. I also went with the others and broke the gate. I have realised now that I did wrong. I am feeling bad about it. I made a mistake.”
Another vandal identified from the photos and videos is Naveen Singh, a resident of Belgachia, who was turned in by his father once the footage surfaced.
Speaking to News18 in Belgachia, Naveen’s father Vinod Singh said: “My son heard the noise and ran to RG Kar Hospital where stone-pelting was taking place. He was there. His photo came out on Facebook. The police reached us and I took Naveen myself to the Lalbazar Police Station and made him surrender. My son has not done anything. People who indulged in vandalism should be arrested.”
Locals described Naveen Singh as a “good person”. “That day, we all went there and we came back after the rally. Naveen is a good boy. After hearing that something was happening, he went there (to the hospital). His photo came out and then his father made him surrender,” a shopkeeper in the area said.
The parents of two others arrested — Sourav Dey and Soumyadip Manish – also claim their sons were arrested without cause.
Gopal Manish, the father of Soumyadip, said: “He went there with friends. He was taking a selfie. The police arrested them yesterday. They have not done anything.”
Rabindranath, an uncle of Sourav Dey, told News18: “They went with friends. They went over the guard rail to take a photo. Please save them.”
As investigation into the heinous rape and murder as well as the vandalism progresses, questions are being raised over the motive of the vandals. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee as well as opposition CPM and BJP have alleged that the violence was meant to destroy evidence.
Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, the lawyer of the rape victim’s parents, also stated in court that the vandals had “instructions to wipe out evidence”.
The emergency ward, nursing station, medicine store and parts of the outpatient department of the hospital were vandalised by miscreants amid midnight protests by women across West Bengal, condemning the rape and murder of a doctor in the hospital’s seminar hall on August 9. An unverified video also surfaced on social media in which someone is heard shouting “go to the seminar hall”, leading to speculation that the vandals planned to tamper with the crime scene.
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