NEW DELHI: Supreme Court on Sunday took suo motu cognisance of the August 9 rape-murder of a doctor at Kolkata’s R G Kar hospital. This comes days after Calcutta HC had transferred to probe to CBI expressing reservations about Kolkata police’s probe into the case.
CJI D Y Chandrachud ordered registration of suo motu criminal writ petition. A bench also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra will initiate proceedings at 10.30 am on Tuesday.
It is rare for SC to take suo motu cognisance of an issue that has already been taken serious note of by a jurisdictional high court.The very fact that the apex court has taken note of the incident indicates its intention to examine long-neglected systemic loopholes resulting in such incidents.
SC to take pan-India call on lack of safety for healthcare professionals
While high court may still be permitted to carry on with the monitoring of the ongoing CBI investigations, SC is expected to take a pan-India call on the lack of safety of doctors and healthcare professionals, especially women, in hospitals. The bench headed by CJI is likely to seek responses from West Bengal and Union governments about addressing this issue.
It may also decide to implead all states and Union Territories as parties to the case if it were to lay down a pan-India safety guideline.
Another factor which may have forced SC to take up the case was the Aug 14 midnight vandalism at the Kolkata hospital that was allegedly aimed at foiling a planned rally by doctors and students in solidarity with simultaneous “reclaim the night” marches across the city. The mob targeted patients, staff, medical equipment and hospital property. Nurses, security guards, and even visitors were traumatised by threats given by the mob. Subsequently, high court rapped state government for its inability to provide security to medical and healthcare professionals and staff at the hospital.
Interestingly, an SC bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna, Sanjay Karol and Sanjay Kumar had dismissed a writ petition filed by Delhi Medical Association and Dr Satyajit Borah last month seeking adequate security for medical and healthcare professionals citing numerous incidents of violent attacks on doctors by irate relatives of patients.
Justice Khanna-led bench told senior advocate Vijay Hansaria that the SC cannot direct the government to bring in a legislation in this regard. Observing that anybody who indulges in violence can be dealt with under the penal code, the bench had said that the only question is the implementation of the law.
CJI D Y Chandrachud ordered registration of suo motu criminal writ petition. A bench also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra will initiate proceedings at 10.30 am on Tuesday.
It is rare for SC to take suo motu cognisance of an issue that has already been taken serious note of by a jurisdictional high court.The very fact that the apex court has taken note of the incident indicates its intention to examine long-neglected systemic loopholes resulting in such incidents.
SC to take pan-India call on lack of safety for healthcare professionals
While high court may still be permitted to carry on with the monitoring of the ongoing CBI investigations, SC is expected to take a pan-India call on the lack of safety of doctors and healthcare professionals, especially women, in hospitals. The bench headed by CJI is likely to seek responses from West Bengal and Union governments about addressing this issue.
It may also decide to implead all states and Union Territories as parties to the case if it were to lay down a pan-India safety guideline.
Another factor which may have forced SC to take up the case was the Aug 14 midnight vandalism at the Kolkata hospital that was allegedly aimed at foiling a planned rally by doctors and students in solidarity with simultaneous “reclaim the night” marches across the city. The mob targeted patients, staff, medical equipment and hospital property. Nurses, security guards, and even visitors were traumatised by threats given by the mob. Subsequently, high court rapped state government for its inability to provide security to medical and healthcare professionals and staff at the hospital.
Interestingly, an SC bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna, Sanjay Karol and Sanjay Kumar had dismissed a writ petition filed by Delhi Medical Association and Dr Satyajit Borah last month seeking adequate security for medical and healthcare professionals citing numerous incidents of violent attacks on doctors by irate relatives of patients.
Justice Khanna-led bench told senior advocate Vijay Hansaria that the SC cannot direct the government to bring in a legislation in this regard. Observing that anybody who indulges in violence can be dealt with under the penal code, the bench had said that the only question is the implementation of the law.