Kolkata rape-murder: Let people decide whether Mamata is speaking truth, says victim's father on compensation row

KOLKATA: With West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee dismissing allegations that she had offered money to the RG Kar doctor's family after the rape-murder incident, the victim's father on Wednesday said he would leave it to the common people to judge whether the CM was speaking the truth.

The father of the woman medic claimed that Banerjee had offered compensation when she visited their house after the incident and later publicly announced that her government was ready to pay Rs 10 lakh to them to build something in their daughter's memory.

Speaking to PTI, he said, "The day the chief minister came to our residence after we lost our daughter, she offered us compensation. Later, at a party programme, she publicly announced that her government could pay us Rs 10 lakh to build something in the memory of our daughter. Now, I will leave it to the people to judge whether she is now telling the truth."

Banerjee had on Monday dismissed allegations that she offered money to the parents of the deceased doctor and said that it was a forum of doctors that had demanded that the state government compensate the family.

"I had never offered money to (the) deceased doctor's family, this is nothing but slander. I had told the parents that if they want to do something in their daughter's memory, our government is with them. I know when to say what," Banerjee had said.

On whether they support the junior doctors 'cease work' for the last 33 days, which had crippled healthcare services in the state, the victim's father said, "We can understand the pain and trouble of the patients, but you also have to understand that the doctors are fighting for a bigger cause."

"A doctor's job is to treat patients, operate on them, but they have now taken to the streets and their movement is supported by all irrespective of their social status. We wholeheartedly support them," he added.

Incidentally, the victim's parents early on Wednesday briefly joined the protesting doctors, staging a sit-in outside the state health department's headquarters since Tuesday evening.

Stating that he was quite hopeful that the CBI would unveil the mystery behind the death of their daughter, the bereaved father hinted that he was quite sure of the involvement of "certain insiders" of the hospital.

"We have faith in the CBI and think that they will crack the case. But I will again stress that there was the involvement of people from RG Kar Medical College Hospital in the brutal end of my daughter," he said.

The CBI has been conducting a probe into the case following a Calcutta High Court order.