On Wednesday evening, August 14, the eve of the 78th Independence Day, men, women, political leaders, and celebrities in West Bengal are scheduled to stage a large-scale protest in the streets, at intersections, and on major roads against the rape and killing of a woman trainee doctor at Kolkata's RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

For the first time, on Wednesday afternoon, medical professionals from all of the major private hospitals along Kolkata's Eastern Metropolitan Bypass—including RN Tagore, Manipal, Medica, Peerless, and others—marched from Mukundapur to Ruby junction.

Also on Tuesday, Calcutta High Court handed over the case to CBI for investigation. The CBI team with three groups of CBI officers, and medical and forensic experts have already reached Kolkata on Wednesday morning.

At midnight on Wednesday, protesters would take to the streets in at least 45 different parts of Bengal. As per the organizers across multiple districts, protests, which call for the liberation of Bengal's women, are scheduled to commence late on Wednesday night and last till after midnight on Independence Day.

Sukhendu Sekhar Ray, a senior Trinamool Congress MP, denounced the doctor's rape and murder and declared that he would hold a dharna in support of a midnight protest that women would be organizing on Wednesday. Furthermore, Tollywood celebrities, filmmakers, and actors like Swastika Mukherjee, Prasenjit Chatterjee, Kaushik Ganguly, Srijit Mukherji, and others also announced their presence during the protests.

As the protest looms large and the city prepares to take to the streets, all eyes will be on the CBI's investigation and the legal proceedings that follow. The demand for justice, accountability, and safety has never been more pressing, as Kolkata stands united in its fight against gender-based violence