Undertanding the Political Implications of RG KAR Rape & Murder Case

The city of joy aka Kolkata, which enjoys the tag of being the safest city for women, came under intense scanner on 9^th August when a 31-year-old female trainee doctor was brutally raped and murdered at the RG Kar Medical College and hospital. Since then, protests erupted across the city to stand in solidarity with the victim for demanding justice, with the Ratt Dokhol kormosuchi on the intervening night of 14^th-15^th August being the showstopper among all. The impact of the rape case had such wider ramifications that international media like the BBC ran a bulletin regarding the horrific rape and murder of a young trainee doctor. Nevertheless, this atrocious incident of such nature came as an unexpected threat for the Trinamool Congress, with TMC Supremo Mamata Banerjee being a woman chief minister coming under intense criticism and condemnation from all walks of life.

As far as the political angle of the case is concerned, it has undoubtedly exposed the issue of women's safety in workplaces as well as the poor working conditions of hospitals and medical colleges. Over the last few years, there have been plenty of rape cases that took place in the state, with the RG Kar case being the most barbaric one. One of the most striking features of the case was the power of the mass, which not only corned the government through protests, rallies, and candle marches to a massive extent but also forced senior politicians of TMC like Sukhendu Sekhar Ray to issue statements that went against the party. Although we all want justice for the victim to prevail, this case could be well utilized as a weapon by the opposition, primarily the BJP, to target the ruling TMC.

With 2 years left for the assembly elections of 2026, this incident has already dented the loyalty and trust among people for Mamata Banerjee, who as a woman chief minister has not been able to guarantee the safety and security of women in West Bengal. The role of the government to prevent the rampaging of the RG Kar hospital premises by the mobs on the night of 15^th August, along with provocative speech made by grassroots-level leaders and attempts to damage evidence, can severely backfire on the ruling regime. The government in the past has used Lakshmir Bhandar as a weapon to attract votes from the women, which has helped the party come big in the 2021 state elections and the 2024 general elections. While the BJP too has to be blamed for the nature of rape cases that happened in states like UP and MP in the past, the party being the principal opposition in WB can come out with their guns blazing to take advantage of this issue to corner Mamata Banerjee for failing to ensure women's safety and to bring out stricter laws to impose capital punishment for rapists. The CPM too can take political dividends, and, in the aftermath, the TMC votes from urban, semiurban, and minority-dominated areas might shift their preference in favor of the CPM while rural and semi-rural areas can vote for the BJP in huge numbers. But CPM along with Congress may find it difficult to convince their stance as the LoP in the parliament, Rahul Gandhi, whose party heads the INDIA Bloc with CPM being a member, has not visited the state till date to understand the gravity of the situation. Besides, other INDIA alliance members like SP, AAP, DMK, NCP (SP), etc. also kept themselves numb, which added fuel to the fire. This means that the vote share for the said parties can equally take a hit at the national levels, with the BJP being the ultimate beneficiary, whereas at the state level also the TMC will expect a decline in the vote share, but not for Congress and CPM as they have no political and a mutually agreed understanding with the TMC.

But for now, timely deliverance of justice stands more important than politics, and we hope that the victim’s family quickly recovers from the tumultuous times with the accused getting the required punishment under the provisions of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.