'If Needed, Accused Will Be Hanged:' Mamata Banerjee on Kolkata Doctor Murder Case

Kolkata: Amid uproar over the sexual assault and murder of a trainee woman doctor at a government hospital in Kolkata, Trinamool Congress supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee reacted sharply to the incident and said that the accused would be hanged if need arises.

"I have directed the case to be taken to a fast-track court. If needed, the accused will be hanged. But they should be given the strictest punishment," Banerjee said while calling the incident "unfortunate."

"I have directed the case to be taken to a fast-track court. If needed, the accused will be hanged. But they should be given the strictest punishment," Banerjee said while calling the incident "unfortunate."

For the unversed, the trainee doctor was found dead inside the seminar hall of the state-run hospital on Friday. Preliminary autopsy report has indicated sexual abuse of the woman doctor before she was killed, police said. Following this, junior doctors staged a protest, demanding justice for the victim. Police have so far arrested a man in connection with the case.

Banerjee claimed that the accused worked at the hospital. She said she spoke to the family of the victim doctor and assured them of proper action in the case.

"Firstly, the incident is unfortunate and despicable. It feels like a personal loss to me. Their (doctors') anger and demand is justified. I support it. Police have also accepted their demands," Banerjee said.

"I have directed the case to be taken to a fast-track court. If needed, the accused will be hanged. But they should be given the strictest punishment," she said.

"For those who are protesting, if they feel that they don't have faith in the state administration, they can approach any other law enforcement agency. I have no issue with that. We want proper and thorough investigation and stringent punishment for the culprits," she added.

The CM urged the doctors to treat patients while continuing their protest.

"Just as we have a responsibility, the hospital’s superintendent too has a responsibility. We will also probe if there was negligence on any part," she said. The Chief Minister said she was in touch with the police regarding the investigation into the case.

The Kolkata Police have constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT), including members of the homicide department, to investigate the incident. The police stated that the arrested accused had free access to several departments of the hospital.

"We have arrested one person who is an outsider. His activities are quite suspicious, and he seems to be directly involved in the crime," news agency PTI quoted a a police official as saying.