Written Petition to be submitted to Indian High Commissioner, Wellington
Shopan Dasgupta
Auckland, August 28, 2024
On 9th August 2024, a ghastly incident took place in R G Kar Hospital, Kolkata.
A resident doctor who was only 31 years old, was on her duty and she has been working for over 36 hours. We do not want to rehash the story line as there are several conflicting reports and what matters is not the timeline, but how the young lady was snuffed out of her life in a horrific and barbaric incident of alleged rape and then distortion off her body.
From a legal perspective, the timeline is important, as that is for the courts to determine how the night unfolded and what exactly happened on the 3rd floor seminar room of R G Kar Hospital on that fateful night.
From Nirbhaya to Abhaya
What is not correct, is that India seems to have again come full circle after nearly 12 years since the Nirbhaya incident. We thought that our country would have turned a corner. There was huge mass movement within India then to seek justice for the victim and to seek ‘legislative change’.
There are so many irregularities in this entire incident. There seems to be an attempt for a ‘cover up.’ It is quite evident that there are different versions off the how the events unfolded on the fateful night which started as 8th August but culminated in the wee hours off the morning of 9th August, when the body of the deceased lady doctor was found.
A young, qualified professional was wiped out from the face off the earth while fulfilling her aspirations to be ‘somebody’ to be a ‘doctor.’
A life was taken in the most bone chilling manner. A life was snuffed out.
Crimes against women for which there does not seem to be either a solution or an end.
A large swarm of mobsters descended on the Hospital premises possibly with the motivation to ‘destroy evidence.’
The family cannot come to terms with the gruesome facts, the way this has all unfolded, even to the extent that the family was bribed to keep ‘hush’ and walk away as though they were being asked to live with what had happened without the ability to seek ‘justice.’
An attempt to bribe
The West Bengal State Authority offered ₹1 million (about $19,210) to the victim’s parents as compensation, whereas the same authority hired 21 most expensive lawyers of India spending ₹250 million (about $480,340) to protect the criminals.
The whole country is protesting.
This is not just a students’ protest, not just a doctor’s protest, neither is this a ‘cosmetic dharna.’ The whole country is rallying to protest for justice for the victim and her family and to bring back some semblance to society and to be civil. The protest is also to respect women and women’s rights, to keep women ‘safe’ not just at their workplace or home, but in all spheres of life.
Abhaya is a national cause; accountability is a national demand.
The courts, the civil society, the doctor are seeking answers.
A Societal Problem
Women’s safety has been commodified and compromised. Sexual violation of women in India is still a very deep rooted societal problem. It is almost like the plague.
India does not boast of statistics that a country can be proud of. Lawless society seems to be on the rise again. Upholding liberal thought and constitutional rights, there is not one demand. There are several demands to improve the lives of ordinary citizens.’
Ordinary citizens who seem to be raising their voices, seem to be quelled, seem to be throttled. There is an active force of trying to deflect and delay matters.
Students, fellow Indians, and the Diaspora all over the world are protesting the so-called law and order machinery, which has enabled a ‘movement seeking justice.’ The numerous attempts to try and write this incident as firstly the lady was sick, then as a case of suicide, begs the question who ordered or who was behind seeking to make such errors of judgement. There are some serious lapses giving room for suspicion that there seems to be a plot to cover up. Why?
A Campaign in New Zealand
We have drafted a written petition and started our signature campaign on August 24, 2024. A group of people from the Indian community banded together at Aotea Square to stand in solidarity with the protests marches and candle vigils that are being held across the world. We intend to gather as many signatures as possible from the Indian Diaspora and submit to the Indian High Commission in Wellington. We want our petition to reach the doors of the Indian government. We want justice for the victim and her family, we want the winds of social change, reinstate women’s rights and keep them safe.
Photos by Roopam Choudhury.
