Tension prevailed at the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital (CMCH) from Wednesday night after a man, who trespassed into the campus, allegedly attempted to molest a woman house surgeon.
The incident took place around 8.30 p.m. on Wednesday when the house surgeon walked to a two-wheeler parking slot, between the administrative block and the centenary building housing her hostel, where her scooter was parked.
A representative of the house surgeons, who are doing the compulsory rotating medical internship (CRMI), alleged that a man had approached the woman, after undressing himself, and she had escaped from him after pushing him down. “We were alerted about the incident; we rushed to the spot. However, the man had fled. Later, he came to the casualty around 1 a.m., and was caught and handed over to the police,” the house surgeon said.
House surgeons had gathered at the campus after hearing about the incident, and left for their hostels only after the Resident Medical Officer assured them of legal action against the stranger.
After the Independence Day flag hoisting on Thursday, house surgeons and postgraduate medical students staged a protest in front of the administrative block condemning the alleged molestation bid and put forth various demands, including posting of numbers of security guards on the campus at night, ensuring adequate lighting, and setting up of surveillance cameras. They also sought night patrolling by the police.
“Most of the surveillance cameras are defunct, and many places on the campus are not well-lit at night. Of the 150 house surgeons, 80 are women, and they do not have separate restrooms barring the ones in their hostel and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology,” a house surgeon said.
Dean A. Nirmala held talks with the house surgeons and assured them of fulfilling their demands. “The Public Works Department has informed that restrooms for women house surgeons would be readied soon. There are nearly 200 closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras, and the defunct ones would be fixed. More lights would be fixed on the campus,” she said, adding that the campus had enough security guards at night.
The police said that the accused, Mayank Galar, 23, from Madhya Pradesh, was wandering around the railway station and reached the hospital campus. He was arrested under Section 74 (assault or use of criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and Section 4 (penalty for harassment of women) of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Woman Act.
The Tamil Nadu Government Doctors Association (TNGDA) condemned the incident and extended support to the protest by the CRMIs and postgraduates. “We demand a safe and secure campus for all CRMIs, postgraduates and faculties,” it said in a statement.
