News18
Picture of doctors taking to streets to protests against the rape and murder of Kolkata doctor. (Image: Representative/PTI)
The victim’s parents reaction came after TMC refuted accusations of a police cover-up in connection to the murder and rape case of their daughter
In a series of twists in the Kolkata doctor’s rape and murder case, the parents of the victim on Thursday said that they were forced to confess on camera that they were not offered money by the Kolkata Police Department. The remarks came a day after the victim’s parents made startling accusations against the city police alleging that they attempted to hush up the case through bribery and rushed the cremation of their daughter’s body.
Notably, the contrary statement of Kolkata doctor’s parents came after the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) released a video in which the parents could be purportedly heard saying that they weren’t offered any money by the cops.
The TMC on Thursday refuted accusations of a police cover-up by the parents of the woman doctor, insisting that a newly surfaced video contradicts their claims by showing the family previously satisfied with the investigation. However, the family was quick to respond to the TMC’s claims, stating that the video was forcibly recorded by the police earlier, just after the cremation.
‘Tried To Bribe Us, Rushed Her Cremation’: Kolkata Doctor’s Parents
On Wednesday, the victim’s parents and relatives alleged that the police “were in a hurry to cremate the body and even offered money”. Making strong allegations against the Kolkata Police, the doctor’s parents said, that on August 9, a senior police officer offered them money and asked them to give their signatures on a white sheet of paper. They further alleged that there was a lot of pressure on them to cremate the body of their daughter against their wishes.
“The police, from the very beginning, tried to hush up the case. We were not allowed to see the body and had to wait at the police station while the body was taken for post-mortem examinations. Later, when the body was handed over to us, a senior police official offered us money, which we immediately declined,” the victim’s father said.
TMC Refutes Allegations Against Police
In response to the allegations made against the Kolkata police on Wednesday, TMC leader and minister Shashi Panja stated that a new video of the parents claimed that the accusations made were false and blamed the Opposition for the developments surrounding the victim’s parents.
“A video went viral on Wednesday where it is claimed that a police official offered money to the parents in the aftermath of the incident. Another video has appeared in the public domain, where the parents clearly stated that such claims are lies and they only want justice for their daughter,” she said.
“We cannot imagine the pain of the grieving parents. The incident is extremely unfortunate and saddening, and we have all been demanding justice for the victim. But, there shouldn’t be politics here. We want to humbly appeal that there should be no political pressure on the parents to do anything,” Panja added.
(News18 could not independently verify the authenticity of the videos which are doing rounds on social media.)
