n Aug. 9, the body of a 31-year-old trainee doctor was discovered on the grounds of R.G. Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkota, West Bengal. Evidence of sexual assault on the victim’s body was quickly reported, setting off a national firestorm across India. For months, women and medical professionals around the country have protested to demand justice for the victim and workplace safety. The Real News reports from Kolkota, West Bengal.

Production: Belal Awad and Leo Erhardt
Videography: Mithun Pramanik and Reek Baruli 
Video Editor: Leo Erhardt

Transcript

Chants: 

From Kolkata to Bengaluru, how many more Khudirams will you kill? 

Narrator: 

In the regional Indian capital of Kolkata, West Bengal, a brutal case of rape and murder. Unclear details around the killing of a trainee doctor, known to her friends and colleagues as Dr. Abhaya, has ignited a mass protest movement – that has spread across the entire nation. 

Chants: 

Your voice, our voices are the justice for RG KAR Hospital. 

Narrator: 

Dr. Dipanwita Sarkar is from Kolkata, and is a member of the West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Front, who are leading protests in the city. 

Dr. Dipanwita Sarkar: 

Right now we, the civilians of Kolkata, are on streets protesting against a heinous crime that has happened in our city. On 9th of August, 2024, a lady doctor who was on her duty in our check, our medical college and hospital, which is also in Kolkata, got raped and murdered in her workplace during her work hours. 

Chants: 

Police, what are you afraid of? What’s your relationship with the culprits?

Narrator: 

Dr. Abhaya was found dead the following morning and her family was initially told by police that it was a suicide. It later became clear that she was, in fact, violently raped and murdered. Other details of what happened, where, and who was involved, remain murky. Dr. Tauhid Momen is also a member of the West Bengal Junior Doctors’ Front. 

Dr. Tauhid Momen: