Doctors protesting against a 31-year-old doctor’s rape and murder at a Kolkata hospital must resume their duties because the poor people of the country cannot be left in the lurch, the Supreme Court said today.

The bench, led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and comprising Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra, was hearing a batch of petitions related to the chilling crime that has shaken the nation.

At the start of the proceedings, a lawyer appearing for resident doctors in AIIMS Nagpur said the medicos are being marked absent because they are on protest.

“If they are on duty, they will not be marked absent and if they are not on duty, then law will be followed. Ask them to first return to work, no one will take adverse action against any doctor. If there is difficulty after that, then come to us, but let them first report to work,” the Chief Justice of India said.

He added that in some cases, people wait for as much as two years for doctors’ appointments. “Poor people cannot be left in the lurch.”

When a lawyer representing doctors from PGIMER Chandigarh said doctors are being victimised.

The Chief Justice reiterated that doctors must get back to duty first. “Once they get back to duty, we will prevail upon authorities to not take adverse action, else how will public health infrastructure run, if the doctors do not work,” the Chief Justice said, adding that the court’s assurance should satisfy the doctors.

The court assured the doctors’ representatives that all their concerns will be addressed by the National Task Force set up to make recommendations for improving doctors’ work conditions and ensuring their security.

“If we start asking representatives of various stakeholders to be part of committee then work of the committee gets dislocated, we know that the committee has senior women doctors and they have dedicated their life to public health infrastructure. The committee will hear everyone, interns, residents, senior residents, nurses, paramedical staff. The committee will ensure that all representatives are heard,” the bench said.

With anger rising over the horrific rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, the report of the DNA samples collected from the victim’s body and the accused will likely become the most important piece of evidence in the case, sources said.

Several theories have emerged online that attempt to explain the brutality inflicted on the doctor. One of those theories claimed that there was more than one accused in the crime. 

So far, Sanjoy Roy, a civic volunteer at the hospital who assisted cops in traffic management, is the sole accused in the case. Roy was arrested after a CCTV camera in the hospital captured him entering the emergency building around 4 am on Friday, the same location where the doctor’s body was found in the hours later. Another big clue was a Bluetooth headset, that connected to his phone, found next to the victim’s body. 

However, sources say once the results of the DNA report are in, it will be clear whether one or multiple people were involved in the crime. If the sample does not show traces of other DNA apart from the Roy, investigators can rule out the involvement of multiple attackers in the case with some certainty.

While sources claim the DNA report should be enough to solve this case, the results of Sanjoy Roy’s psychological exam and polygraphy test will also play an important role even though they are not admissible in court. 

According to sources, the samples are currently being processed in the CBI’s Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) lab. A report will be available soon. 

After the autopsy of the trainee doctor was conducted, social media was flooded with posts claiming severe injuries to his body like fractured bones and 150 mg of semen which was allegedly found in her body, suggesting gangrape.

The Kolkata Police have denied these claims. “Someone said 150 gm semen is found. I don’t know where they have found this kind of Information. And it is circulating in media in all kinds of forms. People are tempted to believe it and they are trying to create confusion among the people.” Kolkata Police chief Vineet Goyal had said.

The Bombay high court has taken suo motu cognisance of a sexual assault case involving two kindergarten girls in Maharashtra’s Badlapur. The court criticised the police investigation and the school’s response. Protests erupted, leading to violence and injuries. The Maharashtra government has introduced new school safety measures, and a Special Investigation Team has been formed to ensure thorough investigation.