RG Kar rape and murder case convict in trouble over sustained misbehaviour, defiance of orders in jail

Kolkata, July 7 : Civic volunteer Sanjay Ray, the sole convict in the ghastly RG Kar rape and murder in August last year, seems to be heading for bigger trouble over complaints of his sustained misbehaviour and defiance of the orders of prison authorities,

Roy was sentenced to life imprisonment by a trial court last year, and since then, he has been serving his term at Presidency Central Correctional Home in South Kolkata.

"It has been almost seven months since he has been behind bars, and to date, he has shown no sign of remorse. Instead, with every passing day, his misbehaviour towards fellow inmates and jail staff and defiance of orders from the correctional home authorities is increasing. If the situation continues like this, we will have no option but to opt for punishment against him as per the prison manuals," an official of the correctional home, who did not wish to be identified, said.

He said that Roy was initially given the job of attending to the garden within the jail premises. As per the rules, a new inmate has to work as an apprentice first, and thereafter, gets permanent status.

"Initially, he was working according to the rules. Later, he started violating the rules. He started misbehaving with fellow inmates and later with staff and officers of the correctional facility," the correctional home official said.

He said the punishment for sustained misbehaviour and defiance of orders might result in freezing of his freedom to withdraw money from the daily wages that he was entitled to for working within the correctional home premises. "His earnings will just continue to be accumulated, but he will not have the freedom to withdraw or spend that money," the correctional home official said.

ADG & IG of Correctional Services, L.N. Meena, was not available for comments on the development. Calls to his mobile phone went unanswered, and messages sent there were not responded to.

Sanjay Roy's counsel and senior advocate Kaushik Gupta told IANS he is not aware of the development. "I am not aware of this, therefore I cannot comment on his behaviour inside the correctional home. I am just appearing on his behalf as a counsel at the Calcutta High Court on the acquittal petition made by him there," he said.

Consultant psychologist and graphologist, Rajneeta Saha Mukhopadhyay, told IANS that Roy's behaviour in jail can be attributed to several factors, like denial of guilt, where he maintains his innocence despite being convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment.

"This may lead to frustration and anger towards the authorities and fellow inmates.

Elaborating further, she said in psychological terms, Roy's behaviour could be related to cognitive dissonance: the discomfort or tension resulting from holding two conflicting beliefs, such as he is innocent and he has been convicted and sentenced.

"Another term is defensiveness, where he has developed a defence mechanism to cope with the stress and guilt associated with his actions. This can also be attributed to anti-social personality traits. Roy's lack of remorse and disregard for others' rights and feelings might be indicative of antisocial personality traits," said Mukhopadhyay.

Meanwhile, the parents of the victim have given a call for a 'Nabanna Abhijan' (march to the state secretariat) on August 9, demanding justice for their daughter on her death anniversary.

The body of the victim was recovered from a seminar hall within the hospital premises in the morning of August 9. While Roy had already been sentenced to life imprisonment by a trial court, even after a year, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had been unable to complete its investigation on the "larger conspiracy" behind the crime.

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