KOLKATA, India: An Indian police volunteer was convicted on Saturday of the rape and murder of a junior doctor at a hospital in the eastern city Kolkata, in the speedy trial of a crime that sparked national outrage over a lack of safety for women.
The woman’s body was found in a classroom at the state-run R G Kar Medical College and Hospital on Aug. 9. Other doctors stayed off work for weeks to demand justice for her and better security at public hospitals.
Defendant Sanjay Roy said in November he was “completely innocent” and was being framed.
Roy’s lawyers could not immediately be reached for comment on the verdict. They had argued there were glaring discrepancies in the investigation and forensic examination reports.
Judge Anirban Das said the sentence, to be announced on Monday, would range from life in prison to the death penalty.
The parents of the victim, who cannot be named under Indian law, expressed dissatisfaction with the probe, saying the crime could not have been committed by just one person.
“Our daughter could not have met such a horrific end by a single man,” her father said. “We will remain in pain and agony until all the culprits are punished.”
India’s federal police, who investigated the case, described the crime as “rarest of rare” during the trial and sought the death penalty for Roy.
Several doctors chanted slogans in solidarity with the victim outside the court. Dr. Aniket Mahato, a spokesperson for the junior doctors, said street protests would continue “until justice is done.”
More than 200 armed police personnel were deployed in anticipation of the verdict as Roy was brought to court in a police car.
The investigation cited 128 witnesses, of whom 51 were examined during the trial, which that began on Nov. 11 and was fast-tracked to conclude swiftly, according to court sources.
Police also charged the officer heading the local police station at the time of the crime and the then-head of the hospital with destruction of the crime scene and tampering with evidence.
The police officer is out on bail while the former head of the hospital remains in detention in connection with a separate case of financial irregularities at the hospital.
India police volunteer convicted of rape, murder of junior doctor in Kolkata
https://arab.news/9sfw4
India police volunteer convicted of rape, murder of junior doctor in Kolkata
- Doctors stayed off work for weeks to demand justice for victim and better security at public hospitals
- Defendant Sanjay Roy said in November he was ‘completely innocent’ and was being framed
Spain urges EU to create joint army amid Greenland dispute
- EU should integrate defense industry and assemble coalition of the willing, Spain foreign minister says
- Joint EU military more efficient than separate national forces, Albares says
ZURICH: Spain is urging the EU to move toward creating a joint army for the bloc as a deterrence measure, Spain’s Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares said in comments to Reuters on Wednesday ahead of a day of meetings in Davos.
The region should focus first on bringing together its tangible assets to properly integrate its defense industry, and then mobilizing a coalition of the willing, the foreign minister said.
The concern over whether European citizens would be willing to assemble militarily is a “legitimate debate”, but the chance of assembling a critical mass was higher as a bloc than on a national level, Albares said, adding: “A joint effort would be more efficient than 27 separate national armies.”
The comments come ahead of an emergency meeting between EU leaders later on Thursday in Brussels to coordinate a joint response to US President Trump’s threats to buy or annex Greenland. A Council spokesperson confirmed late on Wednesday the meeting will still take place despite Trump’s announcement on social media that he and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte had “formed the framework of a deal”.
Albares, speaking after a meeting in Delhi on Wednesday with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar which included talks on deeper defense ties, stressed that the intention of such an army was not to replace NATO, underscoring the importance of the transatlantic alliance.
“But we need to demonstrate that Europe is not a place that will let itself be coerced militarily or economically,” Albares said.
His position remained unchanged despite Trump rowing back on his Greenland threats after speaking to Rutte, a senior foreign official said, adding that Spain was “glad a pathway for dialogue had been opened within the NATO framework, if that pathway is confirmed.”
The concept of integrating national military forces into a supranational European army was first proposed in 1951 to counter the Soviet Union and ensure German rearmament did not threaten its neighbors, but was voted down by France’s parliament in 1954.
“The idea of European defense was part of the origin of the EU. It is up to my generation to finish this task,” Albares said.
