Bengal Hospital Manager Allegedly Raped Women Staff, Threatened To 'Kill' Them

A facility manager of a government hospital in Bengal's East Midnapore district was arrested for allegedly raping many women staffers and threatening to kill them if they told anyone. The incident took place at the Panskura Super Specialty Hospital.

The complainants - who are contractual female ward attendants - alleged that the facility manager, identified as Zahir Abbas Khan, used to call them to his office and rape them. He also threatened to kill them or make them lose their job if they complained, officials said.

The incident came to light after one of the female staffers filed a complaint with the Panskura police station against him.

Following this, Khan was arrested and will be produced in court later today.

According to officials, the survivors have demanded the "strictest punishment" for the accused.

The hospital authorities have not yet issued any statement.

While locals have staged a protest outside the police station over the incident, the BJP alleged that Khan had "considerable influence" - an indirect jab at the ruling Trinamool in the state.

The TMC, however, has said the party has no connection with the accused. Party leader Sheikh Samir Uddin claimed that the accused was a "fraud" who "used TMC's name for personal gains". He also condemned the incident, calling it "shameful", and demanded severe punishment.

This comes a year after the brutal rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor at the RG Kar Medical College in Kolkata - a case which sparked nationwide protests. While the main accused, Sanjay Roy - a civic volunteer at the hospital - was arrested, the case was eventually handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the directions of the Calcutta High Court.

The parents of the victim, however, are not convinced with the trial. They also met CBI Director Praveen Sood in Delhi and expressed their dissatisfaction with the agency's probe.

As the incident marked a year on August 9, the victim's parents called a protest rally 'Nabanna Abhiyan'. What started as a peaceful rally ended up in violence as chaos unfolded when the demonstrators tried to march towards the secretariat despite police warnings, and were lathi-charged by the police. The victim's mother alleged she sustained a head injury in the police action and that her 'shankha', a traditional conch shell bangle, was also broken.