TMC Senior Leader Nirmal Ghosh Nabbed After Fleeing to Odisha in RG Kar Probe

Kolkata, August 13 (IANs) – West Bengal police have captured former Trinamool Congress senior leader Nirmal Ghosh in Odisha, linking him to the 2024 rape and murder of a junior female doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

The arrest follows a new FIR that expands the investigation to include local councilor Somnath Dey and resident Sanjiv Mukherjee, accusing them of overseeing an unauthorized, hastened burial of the victim’s body on August 9 in Panchla. Officials allege that the burial was performed without the mandatory post‑mortem and panchanama, aiming to thwart any further forensic examination.

After the chief minister ordered an inquiry, the Barrackpur Police Commissionerate began probing the controversial funeral. The victim’s father lodged a fresh complaint at Khardah police station, prompting the additional charges.

Sources say Ghosh initially attempted to escape, even acquiring a new mobile SIM to conceal his whereabouts. A lead eventually traced him to Puri, where a police team seized him from a local hotel on Thursday afternoon.

The former MLA will first be presented before a court in Odisha, after which he will be moved back to Kolkata on a transit remand. He is slated to appear before the Barrackpur District Court on Friday, where the prosecution is expected to request an extension of his police custody for further interrogation.

Health Minister Dr. Sharad Mukherjee confirmed the development, remarking that the arrest should have taken place sooner. The investigation also uncovered that funeral charges were allegedly waived without a family signature, suggesting an attempt to hide procedural violations.

The case underscores growing concerns about political interference in criminal investigations and the neglect of standard forensic procedures in West Bengal.