The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday filed a plea in the Calcutta High Court challenging the lower court order granting life imprisonment to Sanjay Roy, accused in the RG Kar rape and murder case. The CBI has sought the death penalty for the convict.
This comes after the West Bengal government has also filed an appeal in the Calcutta High Court’s Division Bench, challenging the life imprisonment of Sanjay Roy. Atorney General Kishore Dutta approached a bench headed by Justice Debangshu Basak pleading for the death penalty for Roy. The next hearing in the case is set for January 27.
Notably, the Sealdah Civil and Criminal Court had sentenced Sanjay Roy to life imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 50,000. Unhappy with the ruling, the state government is aiming to ensure a stiff penalty in this high-profile case.
Mamata Banerjee was unhappy with the verdict and criticised the CBI. Speaking in Murshidabad recently, she had said, "From day 1, all of us had demanded the death sentence, but the court has given a life term until death. We still stick to our demands. I can share my party's opinion; the case was forcibly taken from us. Had it been with the (Kolkata) police, we would have ensured that he got the death sentence," the CM said.
The Sealdah court on Monday sentenced Sanjay Roy to life imprisonment, after convicting him for the rape and murder of the postgraduate trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9, 2024. The ghastly crime had led to unprecedented and prolonged nationwide protests.
Judge Das ruled that the crime did not fall under the "rarest of the rare" category, for not imposing the death penalty on the convict. Roy, a former civic volunteer with the Kolkata Police, was found guilty under Sections 64 (rape), 66 (punishment for causing death), and 103(1) (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).