A senior doctor at Nedumangad District Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram district has been arrested for allegedly attempting to sexually assault a junior woman doctor undergoing house-surgeon training, police said. The accused was identified in reports as surgeon K. M. Binu.

Source: Medical Dialogues

According to police, the alleged incident took place around noon on Friday, when the senior doctor allegedly called the junior doctor to his private consultation room at his residence and attempted to assault her. A second report said he allegedly called her under the pretext of a medical examination.

The woman doctor reportedly managed to escape from the room and informed her colleagues, with whose help she lodged a formal complaint at Nedumangad police station. Police registered a case on charges pertaining to rape and launched an investigation, and an officer at the station said the woman's condition was stable.

The accused, a native of Thiruvananthapuram, was taken into custody from his residence — one report placed the custody at his Kumarpuram residence at around 1 a.m. — and police said he would be produced before a court later on Saturday.

Protests over alleged delay, ministers promise action

The incident triggered protests outside Nedumangad police station on Friday night, with Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) workers alleging that police had delayed taking action despite receiving the complaint.

Health Minister Muraleedharan told Onmanorama that action would certainly be taken against the doctor, saying there was no doubt about it, that the doctor's track record was not very good as far as he understood, and that ensuring the safety of women doctors was the government's responsibility. He said he did not want to comment further before examining the details, and that the question of any delay in police action fell under the Home Department.

Bindhu Krishna, the Minister for Women and Child Development, said the government would investigate if there had been any lapse on the part of the police and that she would speak with the Home Minister about the matter. The allegations against the accused have not been tested in court.