A gory act of violence
The gruesome rape and murder of a 32-year-old postgraduate medical trainee at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata calls for a swift investigation—leading up to the strictest possible punishment for the rapist-murderer. The horrific details of the crime, as reported, reveal the brutality of the criminal, who deserves zero leniency whatsoever. Doctors across the country have gone on an indefinite strike to demand a speedy probe into the matter as well as adequate security for all medical staff. These demands are completely justifiable and non-negotiable. As a matter of fact, the trainee doctor was reported to be on duty till 2 am on Friday, and was raped and murdered in the hours that followed.
West Bengal Chief Minister has endorsed the demands of protesting doctors in the state, and assured that she will seek death penalty for the culprit. She has also expressed her readiness for a CBI probe into the matter, if needed. The state government has transferred the Superintendent of the hospital, Sanjay Vashisth. Meanwhile, the principal of the medical college, Sandip Ghosh, has resigned from his post “as a parent”, asserting that he "cannot take the humiliation" on social media.
While one can expect a fair and time-bound trial in the matter, the unending streak of rape, sexual abuse, and other crimes against women—despite claims of progress and civilisational gains—is a cause of more serious concern. As per the National Crime Records Bureau data for 2022, rape—an extreme form of gender violence—constitutes 7.1 per cent of the overall crimes against women. The crime rate against women in West Bengal was 71.8 per cent in 2022, against the national average of 66.4 per cent.
Rape and other forms of violence against women are direct manifestations of a gender-unequal society. American feminist political activist, Angela Yvonne Davis, asserts that “most rapists do not impulsively rape in order to satisfy an uncontrollable sexual passion. Instead, men’s motives for rape often arise from their socially imposed need to exercise power and control over women through the use of violence”. In essence, rape is mostly about a pursuit of power and control.
Based on CCTV evidence, the police have arrested Sanjay Roy—a civic volunteer for state police, who frequented the hospital. Preliminary findings indicate that Roy was “intoxicated” at the time of the crime. One of the sisters of the accused said they had no relation with Sanjay, and that he is a “habitual drinker”. A Times of India report has revealed certain inconsistencies in Roy’s role as a civic volunteer. Citing one of its sources, the paper reported that he “had great connections with the local police station and was very pally with every junior and senior officer posted at the cop outpost of the hospital”.
Clearly, a sense of power characterises his role in the organisational set-up he operates—a sense of power that builds an illusion of impunity, and grants an illegitimate authority to subdue those lower down the ladder with extreme forms of violence. Rape is an expression of cowardice in disguise of the faulty notion of gender supremacy owned by men. Minimising incidents of rape is not just about changing laws; it is also about changing minds. That change of mind won’t come solely through “teaching our sons”—as some would like to believe. It would come through deterring the “sons of India” through strictest possible punishment. There is a need to build a society where men will fear being rapists more than women fear being raped. Whether as an impulse or expression of hate, or in the wake of intoxication, rape represents what it is—a desire to subjugate women through violence directed at their body and soul.
The state government is expected to live up to its words by fast-tracking the case and ensuring highest possible punishment for the culprit. Meanwhile, understanding that rape is a countrywide phenomenon, there is a need to step up the crusade against rape at a national level.
