KOLKATA: The father of the doctor who was raped and murdered in India’s Kolkata city said this week that police rushed the family into cremating her even though they wanted to keep her body for some time.
Officers from Kolkata police did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
The Aug. 9 attack at the R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital had triggered nationwide protests as people demanded justice for the trainee doctor, who was killed in a classroom where she was resting during a gruelling 36-hour shift.
A police volunteer has been arrested for the crime and is in judicial custody.
Protesters are also demanding better security at government hospitals that they say lack basic amenities like resting rooms for doctors, closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras, and security personnel.
“We wanted to keep the body of our daughter but extraordinary pressure was mounted on us and the body was cremated,” the woman’s father said as he joined doctors protesting at the college on Wednesday night.
He also alleged that a senior police officer had taken him aside and offered him money when his daughter’s body was brought home after an autopsy and before cremation.
“I gave him a piece of my mind and refused to take any money,” he said, without specifying why the money was offered.
The officer accused of making the offer did not respond to calls and messages seeking comment. The victim cannot be named under local laws.
West Bengal Women and Child Development Minister Shashi Panja said on Thursday that the government would not conduct a “postmortem” of the parents’ comments.
“We respect what the family is saying, they have lost their daughter,” she said at a media briefing where she also urged the federal police, who took over the probe last month, to conclude the investigation quickly and “reveal the truth.”
Reuters reported earlier this week that the West Bengal government had, in 2019, promised to take measures to ensure better security at hospitals in the state, but failed to implement these on the ground.
The federal police has also arrested the former principal of R.G. Kar Medical College, his close aide, and two vendors of hospital supplies for alleged graft.
The incident has once again put the spotlight on the lack of safety for women in India, who activists say continue to suffer sexual violence despite tougher laws being introduced after the 2012 gang-rape and murder of a woman in a moving bus in Delhi.
Family of slain Kolkata doctor says police rushed them into cremation
https://arab.news/m7sk8
Family of slain Kolkata doctor says police rushed them into cremation
- Trainee doctor was raped killed in a classroom where she was resting during a gruelling 36-hour shift
- Protesters are demanding better security at government hospitals that they say lack basic amenities
Airspace closed, flights canceled as US-Iran conflict flares
- Major carriers from the Middle East, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the US announced widespread cancelations
- FlightAware said more than 19,000 flights had been delayed globally and more than 2,600 were canceled as of Sunday
PARIS: Thousands of flights have been delayed or canceled in the biggest disruption to global air transport since the Covid pandemic as airlines suspend services to the Middle East following the US and Israeli attacks on Iran.
Iran, Iraq, Israel, Syria, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates all announced at least partial closures of their skies after Saturday’s strikes and Iran launching missiles at capital cities around the wealthy Gulf region.
Major carriers from the Middle East, Europe, Asia-Pacific and the United States announced widespread cancelations, leaving thousands of passengers stranded.
Notable airlines that canceled services included Emirates, Etihad, Air France, British Airways, Air India, Turkish Airlines, and Lufthansa.
According to aviation analytics company Cirium, of around 4,218 flights scheduled to land in Middle Eastern countries on Saturday, 966 (22.9 percent) were canceled, with the figure rising above 1,800 if also including outbound flights.
For Sunday, 716 flights out of 4,329 scheduled to the Middle East have been canceled, Cirium said.
Flight tracking website FlightAware meanwhile said more than 19,000 flights had been delayed globally and more than 2,600 were canceled as of 0230 GMT Sunday.
Airspace closures
Iran swiftly closed its airspace as the strikes began “until further notice,” said the spokesman of Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization, quoted by the Tasnim news agency.
Israel also closed its airspace to civilian flights, Transport Minister Miri Regev announced.
Qatar’s civil aviation authority said it had temporarily closed the Gulf state’s airspace.
Iraq shut down airspace, state media said.
The United Arab Emirates said it was closing its skies “partially and temporarily.”
Syria closed part of its airspace in the south along the border with Israel for 12 hours, the Civil Aviation Authority said.
Jordan’s air force was conducting drills to “defend the kingdom’s skies,” its military said.
Kuwait closed its airspace.
Middle East and North Africa airlines
Gulf carriers Emirates and Etihad canceled 38 percent and 30 percent of their flights respectively, Cirium said.
Qatar Airways suspended all flights from Doha. It canceled 41 percent of total flights, according to Cirium.
Syria Air, the country’s national carrier, canceled all flights until further notice.
Egypt’s national airline, EgyptAir, announced the suspension of its flights to cities across the Middle East, including Dubai, Doha, Manama, Abu Dhabi, Beirut and Baghdad among others.
European airlines
Russia’s air transport authority Rosaviatsia said all commercial flights to Israel and Iran were canceled “until further notice.”
Turkish Airlines canceled flights to Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Jordan until March 2.
Air France canceled its Dubai, Riyadh and Beirut flights for Saturday, and flights to Tel Aviv until Sunday.
British Airways said it was not flying to Tel Aviv and Bahrain until March 4, and canceled flights to the Jordanian capital Amman on Saturday.
Swiss International Air Lines suspended flights to and from Tel Aviv until March 7, and canceled flights from Zurich to Dubai scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
Germany’s Lufthansa, which comprises Swiss and ITA Airways, canceled its flights to and from Tel Aviv, Beirut, Amman, Irbil and Tehran until March 7.
The airline group and its subsidiaries suspended flights to and from Dubai and Abu Dhabi until Sunday.
North America airlines
Delta Air Lines suspended New York-Tel Aviv flights until Sunday.
American Airlines “temporarily suspended” Doha-Philadelphia flights.
United flights to Tel Aviv are canceled until Monday, and flights to Dubai until Sunday.
Air Canada said it canceled flights from Canada to Israel until March 8 and to Dubai until March 3.
Asia-Pacific airlines
India’s two largest private carriers IndiGo and Air India suspended flights to all destinations in the Middle East.
Pakistan International Airlines, the flag carrier of the country that borders Iran, said it had suspended flights to the UAE, Bahrain, Doha and Kuwait.
Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific suspended flights to Dubai and Riyadh.
Garuda Indonesia, Indonesia’s flag carrier, temporarily suspended flights to and from Doha “until further notice,” the company said in a statement Sunday.
Singapore Airlines and Singapore’s Scoot canceled six flight routes in the region until the end of Sunday, local media reported.
Philippine Airlines flights from Manila to Doha, Riyadh to Manila, and Dubai to Manila were canceled on Saturday, as well as one Doha-Manila flight on Sunday.
Other major airlines including Australia’s Qantas and Japan’s All Nippon Airways did not announce any flight cancelations.
Africa airlines
Ethiopian Airlines canceled its flights to Amman, Tel Aviv, Dammam, and Beirut.
Kenya Airways has suspended its flights to Dubai and Sharjah until further notice.
