Kolkata : A Kolkata court sentenced Sanjay Roy to imprisonment till death on Monday after he was convicted of the rape and murder of an on-duty doctor at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. Anirban Das, the Additional District and Sessions Judge in Sealdah court, had on Saturday held Roy guilty of the crime committed against the postgraduate trainee doctor at the hospital on August 9 last year, which sparked unprecedented and prolonged nationwide protests.

Judge Das said the crime did not fall under the "rarest of the rare" category, which justified not imposing the death penalty on the convict. Roy, a former civic volunteer with the Kolkata Police, was found guilty under Sections 64 (rape), 66 (punishment for causing death), and 103(1) (murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

The judge stated that under Section 64, life imprisonment is being awarded, along with a fine of Rs 50,000. An additional five months of imprisonment will be imposed upon non-payment of the fine, he added. Under Section 103(1), Roy has been sentenced to life imprisonment with a Rs 50,000 fine, and another five months in jail if the fine remains unpaid.

Additionally, under Section 66, he has been sentenced to life imprisonment till death, the judge said. All the sentences will run concurrently, Judge Das said. “The CBI prayed for the death penalty. The defence lawyer prayed that a jail term be given instead of the death penalty… this crime does not fall under the rarest of the rare category,” the judge said. The court also directed the state to pay compensation of Rs 17 lakh to the family of the deceased doctor.

“Since the victim died while on duty in the hospital, her place of work, it is the responsibility of the state to pay compensation to the family of the doctor – Rs 10 lakh for the death and Rs 7 lakh for the rape,” Das said. The judge told Roy that he had the right to appeal against this decision before the Calcutta High Court and that he would be provided legal aid if needed. The sentence was passed after the judge heard the final statements of the convict, his defence counsel, the victim's family, and the CBI.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee claimed the probe was "forcibly" taken away from the Kolkata Police, and asserted that had it been with them, they would have ensured a death penalty.