Synopsis
Kolkata's special court sentenced Sanjay Roy to life imprisonment for the heinous crime against a junior doctor, leading to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's discontent. She criticized the leniency of the sentence and expressed a desire for the death penalty, highlighting issues regarding the investigation's integrity.Key Takeaways
- Sanjay Roy sentenced to life for rape and murder.
- Mamata Banerjee seeks death penalty.
- Discontent over the sentence's leniency.
- Concerns about the CBI's investigation.
- Call for justice and accountability.
Kolkata, Jan 20 (NationPress) A special court in Kolkata sentenced Sanjay Roy to life imprisonment on Monday after his conviction for the heinous rape and murder of a junior female doctor at the state-run R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in August of the previous year. Expressing her dissatisfaction, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee voiced her concerns regarding the severity of the sentence.
“We sought the death penalty for the offender. I am unsure how… if the case had been managed by us (state police or Kolkata Police), the death sentence would have been issued much sooner,” she stated to reporters immediately following the court's decision.
When pressed about whether the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had inadequately conducted the investigation, resulting in the imposition of merely “life imprisonment” instead of the desired “death penalty,” the Chief Minister refrained from making any direct remarks.
“I do not wish to comment on this matter. All I can assert is that in three similar cases of rape and murder recently handled by the state police, the death penalty was handed down in a significantly shorter timeframe,” she elaborated.
Amit Malviya, BJP’s IT Cell head and the party’s central observer for West Bengal, asserted that the special court's decision should be challenged and called for the Chief Minister to cease offering protection to criminals.
“Agencies must also probe the involvement of the former Kolkata Commissioner and the Chief Minister regarding the destruction of evidence. Justice must not only be achieved but must also be perceived as being achieved,” Malviya’s statement indicated.
On the other hand, Bikas Ranjan Bhattacharya, a senior advocate at the Calcutta High Court and CPI-M Rajya Sabha member, opined that life imprisonment for Roy constitutes a robust punishment.
“In my view, in a civilized nation, the death penalty should not exist,” he commented.
During the sentencing on Monday afternoon, the judge of the special court, Anirban Das, clarified that the CBI's assertion that Roy’s crime was among “the rarest of rare crimes” was not valid.
