Rape-murder of RG Kar doctor: Sanjay Roy must be hanged, says Athawale

Mumbai, Jan 20 (PTI) Union Minister Ramdas Athawale on Monday said Sanjay Roy, convicted in RG Kar Medical College and Hospital rape-murder case by a Kolkata court, must be given the death penalty.

A Kolkata court on Monday sentenced Roy to life imprisonment until death after he was convicted of raping and murdering an on-duty doctor at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, rejecting demands for the death penalty saying it was not a "rarest of the rare" crime.

Additional District and Sessions Judge in Sealdah, Anirban Das, had on Saturday found Roy guilty of committing the crime against the postgraduate trainee doctor on August 9 last year.

The heinous crime triggered nationwide outrage and prolonged protests in West Bengal.

The court also ordered Roy to pay a Rs 50,000 fine and directed the state government to pay compensation of Rs 17 lakh to the family of the deceased doctor.

"He should be hanged as he has committed a heinous crime. During the Nirbhaya rape case too we had sought death penalty for such criminals," Athawale, the Union minister of state for social justice and empowerment, told PTI Videos.

Judge Das stated that the crime did not fall under the "rarest of the rare" category, which justified the decision to not give the death penalty to the convict. PTI PS BNM