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Chief Justice Sivagnanam said that the Supreme Court has already addressed all the issues before the high court in its August 20 orders
The Calcutta High Court resumed its hearing today on the batch of PILs pertaining to the Kolkata doctor rape and murder case and other issues including the vandalism incident at RG Kar Medical College, where a large mob stormed the hospital on August 15, causing significant damage to the Emergency Ward and other departments.
Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam and Justice H Bhattacharyya presided over the matter.
On August 16, the division bench had asked the West Bengal Police to file the entire sequence of events that led to the vandalism. The bench had also ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to file an interim report on the progress of its investigation into the rape and murder of the resident doctor.
Today, Chief Justice Sivagnanam remarked that the Supreme Court has already taken suo motu cognizance of the issue and on August 20 it passed two orders, the second of which addressed all the issues currently before the high court.
He emphasized the need for judicial discipline as the top court is seized with the matter. A counsel appearing before the court requested an adjournment until August 29 to observe the developments expected on August 27.
The hearing also touched upon concerns regarding compliance with the Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH) guidelines. While the Chief Justice acknowledged the formation of a task force by the Supreme Court to address issues concerning medical professionals, he clarified that broader concerns extending to all institutions were beyond the scope of the current proceedings.
Court also addressed the sensitive issue of revealing the identity of the victim in the ongoing case. Chief Justice Sivagnanam reminded the media and the public of the court's previous instructions not to disclose the identity, noting that even the names of the victim's parents had been masked in court records.
Furthermore, an individual seeking to intervene in the proceedings was asked to wait until the next hearing, as the issues he raised, including the doctor's protest, had already been addressed by the Supreme Court.
Additionally, a counsel representing Item No. 9 on the court's list mentioned the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe alleged financial irregularities at RG Kar Medical College. However, she expressed skepticism about the effectiveness of the SIT, dismissing it as mere eyewash. Court instructed her to wait until the next hearing as well.
The bench adjourned the batch of Public Interest Litigations (PILs) to September 4.
Case Title: XXX AND ANR. VS STATE OF WEST BENGAL AND ORS AND CONNECTED MATTERS
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