The case of the brutal rape and murder of a doctor opens in India as the suspect claims he was framed

New Delhi – More than three months after the rape and murder of a 31-year-old doctor in India sparked nationwide protests across the country, the trial of the only person accused of the brutal crime began Monday in a special court in India eastern state of West Bengal. The only suspect in the case is Sanjoy Roy, a volunteer member of the Kolkata Police who was officially present charged with rape and murder last week.

If convicted, Roy could face life in prison or the death penalty.

According to Indian media reports, he claimed he had been framed when he shouted from a police van as he was being taken to prison from the court last week, saying he was completely innocent.

“I have remained silent so far. But I didn't commit the rape and murder. I am intimidated by the government and my own ministry. They asked me not to say a word. But I'm not guilty, I'm being framed to shield the real culprits,” he reportedly said.

India has been hit by widespread protests and mass protests Doctors' strikes in August, when medical professionals walked off their jobs to demand justice for the young doctor who was found murdered in a lecture hall at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata on August 9.

At the time, authorities said the woman had gone to the lecture hall to rest during a night shift when she was attacked. An autopsy confirmed that she was sexually abused before her murder. It also suggested that she may have resisted her attacker and was tortured before being killed.

Medical professionals across the country called for safer workplaces while citizens called for safety for women in a country where an average of 90 rapes per day were reported in 2022, according to the latest government data.

About 128 witnesses are expected to testify during the trial. The hearings are being held daily as authorities try to expedite the high-profile case. The proceedings are not public.

India's Central Bureau of Investigations (CBI) has also arrested a police officer and the hospital's superintendent for alleged evidence tampering and financial irregularities.

The doctor's murder resurfaced the country's anger over women's safety, which had recently boiled over in the wake of the murder 2012 gang rape and murder of a young woman on a bus from New Delhi that was traveling through the metropolis.

This brutal attack prompted the Indian Parliament to enact stricter laws against sexual violence. However, there is no evidence that the stricter laws have reduced the number of sexual assaults in the country.