India's Supreme Court sets up security task force after rape and murder of doctor | Sexual assault news

The Supreme Court orders federal paramilitary forces to provide security at the Calcutta government hospital where the medical student was attacked.

India's Supreme Court has set up a national task force of doctors to develop recommendations on workplace safety following the rape and murder of a medical student at a government hospital, sparking nationwide protests.

The court said on Tuesday that the medical board was set up to lay down guidelines for the safety and protection of medical personnel across the country.

India has reacted with outrage to the attack and murder of the 31-year-old intern in a state hospital in the eastern Indian city of Calcutta. The crime once again highlights sexual violence against women in the country. Her bloodied and battered body was found on August 9.

“Protecting the safety of doctors is a matter of national interest and the principle of equality. The nation cannot wait [for] another rape so that action is taken,” said Chief Justice Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud.

The court also asked the federal police to submit a report on the status of their investigation into the woman's murder at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on Thursday.

In addition, the government ordered that a federal paramilitary force be responsible for the security of the hospital and assured the doctors that their concerns would be addressed.

Doctors and health workers in India have held protests and candlelight vigils and refused to treat non-emergency patients to demand a speedy criminal investigation. The Supreme Court ordered all doctors to return to work.

A volunteer police officer who was tasked with assisting police officers and their families with hospital admissions when needed was arrested and charged with the crime.

The doctors' protests were supported by an angry population. Thousands of women and men demonstrated in Calcutta and other cities across the country, demanding justice and better security measures in hospitals.

The Indian Medical Association (IMA), the country's largest doctors' association with 400,000 members, staged a 24-hour strike over the weekend and called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to introduce stricter protective measures since 60 percent of India's doctors are women.

Activists say the latest incident shows that women in India continue to face sexual violence despite stricter laws introduced after the gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old student on a bus in New Delhi in 2012.

This attack prompted politicians to impose harsher punishments for such crimes and set up fast-track courts for rape cases. The government also introduced the death penalty for repeat offenders.

Despite stricter laws, sexual violence is still widespread in India.

In 2022, the latest year for which records are available, police recorded 31,516 rape reports, according to the National Crime Records Bureau – a 20 percent increase from 2021.