Kozhikode: Barely a couple of months after the brutal rape of a young COVID patient by an ambulance driver in southern Kerala, a hospital employee here has been suspended from service for alleged molestation attempt on a woman lodged at the COVID centre of the Malabar Medical College.

In the latest case, the hospital employee took his target to a deserted floor under the pretext of meeting the doctor on Sunday night and tried to molest her.

The woman also said that the employee had troubled her over the phone initially. Then he lied to her and took her to the deserted floor and pushed her in the lift, the woman stated in her complaint.

Though she informed the doctor about this, no action was taken. However, the hospital authorities claimed that they have not received any written complaint.

The Atholi police will record the statements of the woman. She had complained to the police over the phone.

The Malabar Medical College is at Ulliyeri in Kozhikode, northern Kerala.

In September, a COVID-19 patient in Pathanamthitta was sexually assaulted inside an ambulance by its driver. Noufal, the driver of the Kanivu 108 Ambulance, was arrested soon after the incident and dismissed from service. The shocking incident had triggered widespread protests.

The State Women's Commission registered a case over the incident and its chairperson M C Josephine said this issue showed that women patients need separate security measures.

CPM and Youth Congress activists marched to the hospital as they pressed for the molester's arrest.