RG Kar cremation conspiracy: 2nd accused Sanjeev Mukherjee arrested in Kolkata
Synopsis
Two of the three accused in the alleged conspiracy to hastily cremate the RG Kar rape-murder victim's body were arrested within 24 hours — ex-TMC MLA Nirmal Ghosh from Odisha and Sanjeev Mukherjee from Kolkata's Chinar Park. The arrests, triggered by a fresh FIR filed on the victim's father's complaint, reopen one of India's most politically charged crime cases.
Key Takeaways
Sanjeev Mukherjee was arrested on Thursday night from Chinar Park, Kolkata in connection with the RG Kar cremation conspiracy case.
Prime accused Nirmal Ghosh , former TMC MLA from Panihati and ex-Chief Whip in the West Bengal Assembly, was arrested from Odisha on Thursday afternoon.
Both will be produced before a district court in Barrackpore, North 24 Parganas on 14 August 2025 ; police custody is being sought.
Third accused Somnath Dey , a TMC councillor from Panihati Municipality , remains absconding.
A fresh FIR was registered at Khardah Police Station based on a complaint by the victim's father, following a probe ordered by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on 8 August 2025 .
The alleged conspiracy involved hurried cremation at Panihati to prevent a second post-mortem of the victim's body.
Sanjeev Mukherjee, a co-accused in the alleged conspiracy to hastily cremate the body of the RG Kar rape-murder victim, was arrested on Thursday night from a house in Chinar Park, Kolkata, police said on Friday, 14 August 2025. The arrest follows that of the prime accused, former All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) legislator Nirmal Ghosh, who was apprehended from a hideout in Odisha on Thursday afternoon. A third accused remains at large.
The Two Arrests in 24 Hours
Nirmal Ghosh, the former TMC member of the legislative assembly from the Panihati Assembly constituency and the party's former Chief Whip in the West Bengal Assembly, was traced to a hideout in neighbouring Odisha and brought back to Kolkata. Hours later, Mukherjee was picked up from Chinar Park, according to a state police insider. Both accused are scheduled to be produced before a district court in Barrackpore, North 24 Parganas, on Friday, where the public prosecutor is expected to seek police custody.
The Cremation Conspiracy Allegations
The case centres on allegations that the body of the female doctor — recovered from a seminar hall at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on the morning of 9 August 2024 — was hurriedly transported to a crematorium in Panihati, North 24 Parganas, and cremated in breach of established protocols. Investigators suspect the rushed cremation was intended to foreclose the possibility of a second post-mortem examination. According to allegations, the entire process was supervised by Ghosh, Mukherjee, and a third accused, Somnath Dey, a TMC councillor from Panihati Municipality.
Fresh FIR and the Victim's Father
The renewed investigation was set in motion after West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari announced a fresh probe by the Barrackpore Police Commissariat on 8 August 2025, during a programme marking the second death anniversary of the victim. A fresh First Information Report (FIR) was subsequently registered at Khardah Police Station based on a complaint filed by the victim's father, naming all three accused. All three went absconding shortly after the FIR was filed.
Third Accused Still on the Run
Somnath Dey, the TMC councillor, remains at large. Search operations are reportedly under way at multiple locations to track him down. The arrests of Ghosh and Mukherjee within a single 24-hour window signal an intensifying effort by the Barrackpore Police Commissariat to close out the case. The RG Kar case, which triggered widespread protests across West Bengal and India in 2024, continues to reverberate in the state's political and judicial landscape.
Point of View
One from within Kolkata — suggest the Barrackpore Police Commissariat moved with unusual urgency once the fresh FIR was lodged, raising questions about why the same investigation stalled for over a year. That both Ghosh and Mukherjee went absconding immediately after the FIR points to forewarning, a detail courts and investigators will need to account for. The political dimension is impossible to ignore: the prime accused is a former TMC legislator and ex-Chief Whip, and the case is being pursued under a government that replaced the TMC in West Bengal. The third accused, Somnath Dey, remains free — and his arrest, or lack thereof, will be the real measure of whether this investigation goes the distance.
NationPress
14 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Sanjeev Mukherjee and why was he arrested?
Sanjeev Mukherjee is a co-accused in the alleged conspiracy to hastily cremate the body of the RG Kar rape-murder victim in August 2024. He was arrested from Chinar Park in Kolkata on Thursday night in connection with a fresh FIR registered at Khardah Police Station.
Who is Nirmal Ghosh and what is his role in the RG Kar cremation case?
Nirmal Ghosh is the prime accused in the cremation conspiracy — a former TMC MLA from the Panihati Assembly constituency and the party's ex-Chief Whip in the West Bengal Assembly. He is alleged to have supervised the hurried cremation of the victim's body to prevent a second post-mortem, and was arrested from a hideout in Odisha on Thursday.
Why is the hurried cremation of the RG Kar victim significant?
Investigators suspect the rushed cremation at a Panihati crematorium was intended to eliminate the possibility of a second post-mortem examination of the victim's body, potentially concealing evidence in the rape-murder case. The alleged breach of cremation protocols prompted the victim's father to file a fresh complaint.
What is the current status of the third accused, Somnath Dey?
Somnath Dey, a TMC councillor from Panihati Municipality, remains absconding. Police have launched search operations at multiple locations to trace him.
What triggered the fresh investigation into the RG Kar cremation case?
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari announced a fresh probe by the Barrackpore Police Commissariat on 8 August 2025, during a programme marking the second death anniversary of the victim. A new FIR was subsequently filed at Khardah Police Station based on a complaint by the victim's father, naming Ghosh, Mukherjee, and Dey.
