An Indian police officer has been sentenced to life in prison for the rape and murder of a young doctor Debate News

The killing of a 31-year-old doctor in a government hospital in the city of Kolkata has highlighted the ongoing issue of violence against women in the country.

An Indian court has sentenced a police officer to life in prison who was found guilty of raping and murdering a young doctor at the hospital where he worked in the eastern city of Kolkata.

On Monday, Judge Anirban Das dismissed Sanjay Roy’s death sentence demands, saying that “it is not uncommon in these cases”, and ordered that the 33-year-old prisoner must spend his life in prison.

Roy has always maintained his innocence, saying he was arrested. He can appeal his decision to a higher court.

The bloody body of a 31-year-old doctor was found in a classroom at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9. An autopsy revealed that she had been strangled and sexually assaulted.

Her parents broke down in tears inside the courtroom on Monday, saying they were “shocked” by the sentence and hoped her killer would be hanged, in a case that highlighted the ongoing issue of violence against women in the world’s most populous country.

“We are shocked by the decision,” the victim’s father told AFP, tears streaming down his face. “We will continue our fight, and we will not let the investigation stop… Whatever happens, we will fight for justice.”

Family members cannot be identified in accordance with Indian law on reporting sexual violence cases.

Police investigating the case said the crime fell under the “extremely unusual” category and called for the death penalty for Roy. The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) party also wanted him killed.

Roy was arrested a day after the crime, and the controversy in the case began in November. The attack prompted the Supreme Court of India to set up a national task force to suggest ways to improve security in government hospitals.

After the attack, doctors and medical students across India held protests and rallies demanding better security. Thousands of women also protested in the streets, demanding speedy trials in the country’s slow justice system.

India imposes the death penalty, although it is rarely carried out. The last execution was carried out in March 2020 – of four men convicted of the rape and murder of a 23-year-old woman on a bus in the capital New Delhi in 2012.

The killing of the doctor was compared to the incident in 2012 which led doctors in public hospitals to demand better security.

Activists say the new sentencing requirements have not stopped rape and the number of recorded rape cases has increased. In 2022, police recorded 31,516 rape reports – a 20 percent increase from 2021, according to the National Crime Records Bureau.