Mob 'with swords' vandalizes hospital where doctor was raped, murdered
What's the story
A mob armed with swords and rod stormed RG Kar Hospital in Kolkata around 12:30am on August 15, destroying the property and pelting police personnel with stones. The incident occurred as statewide protests demanding justice for a trainee doctor who was brutally raped and murdered at the same hospital were taking place. The mob broke through barricades, damaged gates, and overturned a police post along with several vehicles.
Eyewitness account
Mob armed with rods, swords attacked hospital: Senior cop
A senior police officer who responded to an SOS call expressed shock at the level of destruction caused by the mob. "I have been in this force for 28 years, but I have not seen anything like this. The mob was tearing wires to snap the electricity with their bare hands, they had rods and swords and came charging towards the police." "There were patients undergoing treatment and the force saved them on priority," he told ThePrint.
Impact
Extensive damage disrupts hospital services
The mob's rampage resulted in extensive damage to the hospital's infrastructure and equipment. Iron gates were uprooted, lights and fans shattered, medical supplies scattered across floors amid glass shards, and beds along with IV drips overturned. No room was spared from the attack. Dr. Sourav Roy, a resident doctor at RG Kar Hospital, said the protests will only get louder.
Aftermath
Police response and injuries sustained
To quell the mob attack, Kolkata Police fired tear gas shells and detained individuals outside RG Kar Hospital. Hours after the mob rampage incident, a hospital security guard who was on duty said the mob damaged everything, from computers to medicines, even the CCTV cameras. However, the Kolkata Police, in a post on X, said the crime scene at seminar hall, where the doctor's body was found, was untouched. The post has now been deleted.