A senior doctor at one of the Capital’s prominent government hospitals has been arrested for allegedly subjecting a subordinate employee to sexual exploitation, the police said on Thursday.
Identified as Naval Bhatia, who is with the Sports Injury Centre at Safdurjung Hospital, the accused doctor was arrested a day after having been booked for “inappropriately touching” a data-entry operator employed at the same department in early April.
“According to the 24-year-old victim, Bhatia used to molest her on a routine basis and threatened to have her dismissed when she objected to his actions,” said a senior police officer, adding that she approached them with her complaint last Saturday.
“Not only did he subject her to sexual advances, she has claimed he also used to force her to touch male patients’ private parts just to trouble and harass her. He was arrested soon after a preliminary inquiry to verify her allegations concluded,” the officer said. The victim told the police that the latest instance of sexual harassment had occurred on April 7.
Even as he was arrested under appropriate sections of the Indian Penal Code , the hospital administration is understood to have instituted an inquiry into the incident. Senior hospital representatives have told the police that the victim was not a permanent hospital employee but a staffer appointed on contract.
