The father of the young doctor who was found raped and murdered at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9 sent an email to Union home minister Amit Shah on Tuesday seeking a meeting with him for “guidance”, citing “helplessness” and “tremendous mental pressure”.

The email was sent to at least two central government email IDs used by the Union home minister’s office.

The letter comes a day after the woman’s parents requested the junior doctors to call off their hunger strike.

The junior doctors called off their 17-day fast and withdrew their call for total shutdown of the state’s health services on Tuesday following a meeting with chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

The doctors cited the request from the slain doctor’s parents as the primary reason for calling off their strike.

Hours after that, the family knocked on the Union home minister’s doors.

Calcutta High Court had on August 13 handed the probe into the rape and murder to the CBI, which reports to Shah. The CBI has submitted a chargesheet naming Sanjay Roy, who was a civic volunteer attached to Kolkata Police, as the lone suspect.

The letter from the victim’s father reads: “I… the father of Avaya, I am writing to respectfully request an appointment with you at your convenience or at any other location as you may suggest. After that heinous unforeseen incident happened to our daughter, we have been going through tremendous mental pressure and feeling helpless now.”

The father writes: “Sir, I along with my wife… want to meet with you to discuss a few things regarding the situation and pray for your guidance and help. I would be truly grateful for the opportunity to speak with you and gain your insights on the issue, as I believe your experience and guidance would be invaluable.”

The Telegraph tried to get in touch with the family to know what prompted them to contact the Union home minister within hours of the junior doctors calling off the hunger strike. But there was no response to phone calls or text messages till late on
Tuesday.

Sources close to the family said the bereaved parents were eagerly waiting for a response from Shah and were hopeful that he would guide them in the case.