Kolkata doctor death: CBI quizzes TMC youth leader in RG Kar Hospital rape-murder case
Times of India | 20 September 2024
CBI (File pic) KOLKATA: The CBI on Thursday questioned TMC youth leader Ashish Pandey, who is also a house staff at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, in connection with the rape and murder of the doctor, an officer said. Pandey was interrogated for several hours at the CBI's CGO Complex office before he left late in the night.
Ashish Pandey is close to Sandip Ghosh and suspended doctor Avik De. Pandey had allegedly checked into a Salt Lake hotel on Aug 9.
"Pandey's phone number was found in the call lists of several persons.He had checked in at a hotel in Salt Lake with a woman friend on the day the trainee doctor's body was found. We are trying to ascertain his activities on that day," the CBI officer said.
The CBI is also seeking information from the hotel regarding Pandey's bookings and payments.
The officer added, "The hotel room was booked via an app. He checked in on August 9 afternoon and left the next morning. We are trying to find out what was the purpose of his stay there."
The agency spoke to a hotel staff on Thursday and checked the register. They said that the hotel room was booked through a mobile app in the name of Pandey.
CBI checks call records of Sandip Ghosh and Abhijit Mandal
The CBI has also initiated an investigation into the call records of Sandip Ghosh and Tala OC Abhijit Mandal. The agency suspects that Ghosh may have been acting under someone else's direction.
During the custodial interrogation, additional mobile numbers have emerged, leading the agency to believe that more individuals may be involved in the destruction of evidence. After a face-to-face confrontation between Mandal and Ghosh, the CBI suspects that they were in contact with each other and attempted to "vitiate the evidence". The agency also questioned the hasty cremation of the body despite the parents' demand for a second autopsy.
On Thursday, the CBI questioned DYFI leader Minakshi Mukherjee, who had stopped the vehicle carrying the doctor's body on August 9. Mukherjee had previously claimed that the doctor's cremation was carried out in a hurried manner. She was among the few individuals who had interacted with the victim's parents that day. Upon leaving the CBI office, Mukherjee stated that she had cooperated with the officers.
Additionally, the CBI questioned Anjan Adhikari, the MSVP of Calcutta Medical College, for the second day in a row.