Sandip Ghosh’s bail in the RG Kar corruption case has triggered fresh criticism from the parents of the trainee doctor who was raped and murdered at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, as well as doctors who have warned of a larger agitation over the pace of the investigation and trial.
The Supreme Court granted bail to Ghosh on Thursday after noting that he had spent more than two years in custody while only seven of 147 witnesses had been examined in the corruption case. Ghosh, the former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, is also accused of conspiracy in the August 2024 rape-and-murder case involving a postgraduate trainee doctor.
The victim’s father criticised the Central Bureau of Investigation over the slow progress of the case and said the family was still awaiting a chargesheet against Ghosh in the rape-and-murder matter. He alleged that Monish Upadhyay, who led the CBI investigation, had told him that there was little the agency could do at present and that the process would take time.
“An agency that gets paid when it works and takes bribes when it does not work — I have nothing to say about it,” the father said, according to the Times of India. He also questioned how public faith in an investigating agency could be sustained if delays continued, while making clear that he did not hold the government directly responsible for the CBI’s functioning.
The victim’s mother, Ratna Debnath, who is now a BJP MLA from Panihati, also said the government could not be held directly responsible for the CBI’s actions because it is an independent investigating agency. She said the agency would nevertheless have to provide answers about its work.
The Supreme Court bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Prasanna B. Varale granted bail after considering the slow progress of the trial. The Calcutta High Court had earlier denied Ghosh bail, citing the interests of the trial.
Corruption allegations against Ghosh emerged after the trainee doctor’s body was found at the hospital. He resigned as principal and was later arrested over alleged financial irregularities. The CBI also arrested Ghosh and Abhijit Mondal, then officer-in-charge of Tala police station, over allegations involving evidence tampering and related investigative lapses.
The case has placed the functioning of investigative and medical institutions under sustained public scrutiny. The slow examination of witnesses has become a central concern because the Supreme Court’s bail order directly linked the period of custody to the limited progress recorded in the trial. The figures cited by the court show that seven of 147 witnesses had been examined when bail was granted.
Junior doctor Aniket Mahata, who was a prominent face of the RG Kar movement, said the bail decision had renewed anger among doctors and called for a united fight for justice. The Joint Platform of Doctors also criticised the CBI and warned that doctors could organise a larger agitation over the investigation’s pace.
The victim’s family has reiterated its demand for a chargesheet against Ghosh in the rape-and-murder case. The CBI’s next steps in that investigation, along with the progress of the corruption trial, will determine how the matter moves forward after the Supreme Court’s bail order.
