A former Calcutta police commissioner and two of his deputies have been suspended for allegedly “mishandling” the probe into a postgraduate trainee’s rape and murder at RG Kar Hospital, "offering a bribe" to her family, and for “wrong attitude” during news conferences on the incident.

Making the announcement on Friday, chief minister Suvendu Adhikari said then police commissioner Vineet Goyal, deputy commissioner (north) Abhishek Gupta and deputy commissioner (central) Indira Mukherjee would stay suspended at least till the inquiry and departmental proceedings are complete.

“The chief secretary and home secretary have done fact-finding over the past few days. Based on that, we have taken an administrative step,” Suvendu said.

“As home minister, I’m saying... the biggest allegation was against two officers who offered a bribe on behalf of the (Mamata Banerjee) government. This needs to be probed. For a transparent probe, the officers have to be kept under suspension.”

He added: “We are suspending three IPS officers — Vineet Goyal, Indira Mukherjee and Abhishek Gupta.”

Suvendu went on to say there was “one deputy commissioner whose attitude and language in front of the media was not very appropriate for the state”.

Kolkata Police, led by Goyal, had arrested the lone suspect, Sanjay Roy, within a day after the 31-year-old junior doctor was found dead in the seminar hall of the emergency building at RG Kar on August 9, 2024.

A little more than 72 hours after the crime, however, the case was handed over to the CBI following a high court order. Roy remained the lone accused and was convicted. He is serving a life term.

The CBI has continued to probe the case for the last 21 months but is yet to find a second suspect despite repeated appeals from the junior doctor’s parents.

The central agency did arrest former RG Kar principal Sandip Ghosh and the then officer-in-charge of Tala police station, Abhijit Mondal, for alleged evidence-tampering and a larger conspiracy, but could not chargesheet them for want of evidence.

While explaining the nature of the police’s “faults”, the new chief minister said: “The incident that happened... mishandling, no proper FIR and investigation.... The police did not do what they were supposed to do initially as a disciplined organisation.

“We are not going into the main investigation. The CBI is doing it and it is still pending with the court.”

Suvendu said the “internal fact-finding” led by the chief secretary was carried out because of the persistent allegations from the junior doctor’s parents.

The probe will ascertain whether the police had offered the family a bribe.

“The officers offered financial assistance, which is equivalent to a bribe. We will take out WhatsApp chats, call records of that time (and find out) if any of the ministers or the (then) chief minister had instructed them,” Suvendu said.

He said Indira Mukherjee, who was not the official police spokesperson, had briefed the media.

“She was not given any written order to brief the media. Maybe she acted on verbal instructions. All call records will be checked,” Suvendu said.

Goyal is now the director-general of police (Intelligence Bureau) with additional charge of the Anti-Corruption Bureau. Gupta is the commandant of the second battalion of the Eastern Frontier Rifles, and Mukherjee is a special superintendent of police with the Bengal CID.

The rape and murder of the doctor who was working night shift at the state-run medical college and hospital had shaken the entire nation, triggering spontaneous street protests led by women who rose abovepolitical loyalties.

Millions rallied seeking “justice” for the junior doctor. The majority felt the police had not done enough and had tried to tamper with evidence to “shield” the “real culprits”. But the CBI chargesheet named Roy alone.

The additional district sessions judge, Sealdah, Anirban Das, said in his verdict that considering the testimony of two prosecution witnesses -- Apurba Biswas, professor of forensic medicine at RG Kar and Adarsh Kumar, professor of forensic medicine at AIIMS, Delhi -- he had concluded that a single person had committed the crime.

“I have perused the opinions of the PW-21 (Biswas) and the PW-37 (Kumar) and also perused the still photographs of the post-mortem examination. I have also considered the nature of the injuries over the facial areas of the victim and that the said injuries were resistance injuries,” the judgment said.

“….From the PM report as well as the reply of the PW-21 during the cross-examination, it appears… this evidence also suggests that the assault was done by a single person.

“On the basis of the discussion above, I am of the view that the victim was attacked by a single person and the said person committed thesmothering and throttling as well as penetrative sexual assault.”