An Indian court on Saturday found a volunteer police officer guilty of raping and killing a trainee doctor, a case that sparked nationwide protests and medical protests last year as concerns resurfaced over the lack of protection for women.

The killing of a 31-year-old doctor while on duty at a hospital in eastern Kolkata last August shed new light on the ongoing issue of violence against women in the country. The case was fast-tracked through India’s popular legal system and arguments began in November.

Judge Anirban Das said the sentence for Sanjay Roy, 33, would be announced on Monday and could range from life imprisonment to the death penalty.

Police found the bloody body of the woman in the seminar hall of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in the city on Aug. 9. Later, investigators found that the victim had been strangled and confirmed that she had been raped.

Roy was arrested a day after the crime. Since then he has maintained his innocence and has told the court that he is innocent.

The case was initially being investigated by the Kolkata Police but later the court handed over the investigation to the state investigators after the government officials were accused of tampering with the investigation.

After the killing, doctors and medical students across India staged protests and rallies demanding justice and better protection for them. Thousands of women across the country also took to the streets, demanding justice for the victim as they took part in “Reclaim The Night” marches. Some protesters called for the culprit to be given the death penalty.

The case highlighted the prevalence of sexual abuse against women in India and prompted the Supreme Court of India to set up a body that proposed measures to improve safety in government hospitals.

Many cases of crimes against women go unreported in India due to the stigma associated with sexual violence, and a lack of trust in the police. Women’s rights activists say the problem is particularly acute in rural areas, where communities sometimes shame victims and families worry about their livelihoods.

However, the number of rape cases in the country has increased. In 2022, police filed 31,516 rape reports — a 20 percent jump from 2021, according to the National Crime Records Bureau.

In 2012, the gang-rape and murder of a 23-year-old student on a New Delhi bus sparked widespread protests across India. It urged lawmakers to mandate stricter penalties for such crimes, as well as establish fast-track courts for rape cases. The government also imposed the death penalty on repeat offenders.

The rape law that was amended in 2013 also criminalized stalking and voyeurism and lowered the age at which a person can be prosecuted as an adult from 18 to 16.