Delhi doctor sexually harasses patient who went to get lump examined; held

The woman alleged that the doctor touched her inappropriately under the guise of examining her and spoke to her in an unprofessional manner.

A resident doctor at a government hospital in Burari has been booked for allegedly sexually harassing a 21-year-old woman who came to the hospital on Tuesday with her mother seeking treatment for a lump, police said on Thursday.

In her complaint, the woman also said that the doctor followed her downstairs to the X-Ray room and offered to examine her right there in the dimly lit basement. (Representative Image/PTI File)

Deputy commissioner of police (north) Raja Banthia confirmed the alleged incident and identified the doctor as Mohammed Imran, who was arrested on Wednesday.

According to police, the woman said in her complaint that she visited the hospital with her mother on Tuesday after noticing a lump in her chest over the past two weeks. She was referred to a room where a female and two male doctors were present. “The woman said that the female doctor was examining her behind a curtain when the accused doctor entered without permission and started touching her inappropriately under the guise of examining her,” an officer associated with the case said.

The doctors then sent her to the hospital basement for an X-ray, but when she arrived there, staff informed her the X-ray room had closed for the day. She told police that the accused doctor allegedly followed her downstairs and offered to examine her right there in the dimly lit basement.

“I told him that I felt unsafe and uncomfortable and firmly refused to allow him to examine me. I started walking towards the lift and he followed me,” the woman said in the FIR.

The woman told police that the doctor then began speaking to her in an unprofessional manner, asking for personal details such as her address and phone number. She alleged that he touched her inappropriately, prompting her to flee.

The woman then called the police, who took her statement and registered a case under sections 75 (sexual harassment) and 78 (stalking) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita at Burari police station.

The officer said an inquiry revealed the woman was first treated in the dermatology department before being referred to orthopaedics, where she encountered Dr Imran.

“The doctor was arrested within hours of the complaint. He is originally from Patna, and has been on contract at the Burari government hospital for three years, and works in the orthopaedic department. He admitted that the woman had come for treatment,” the officer said.

The woman’s statement before a magistrate was also recorded on Wednesday.

In a separate incident on Monday, a 22-year-old university student in North Campus alleged that a cab driver molested her. Police said the driver was arrested the same day.