By Khushwant Singh
AN INFORMATION technology engineer is now in court for
attempting to outrage the modesty of a doctor.
Pham Thai Ha, 30, is accused of holding her shoulders and trying
to kiss her while being treated for a rash on a finger in June last
year. He is also alleged to have used criminal force on her by
holding her left hand and pulling her towards him during the same
consultation.
The Vietnamese national and Singapore permanent resident is
denying both charges. The court has ordered that the identity of
the doctor not be revealed. On the first day of the trial on
Tuesday, a district court heard that Pham, then working for
StarHub, came to the clinic at 2.40pm on June 6 last year. She was
the only doctor at the clinic then.
Testifying, the doctor said that after she had prescribed
antibiotic cream for the rash on Pham's finger, he complained about
a rash on his buttocks. She told him to remove his clothes for an
examination but found no rash.
The doctor alleged that he had an erection and it was then he
reached for her left hand and tried to tug it towards him. She said
she pulled away and told him to dress while she went to her table
to write the case notes.
After putting on his clothes, he went behind her, put his hands
on her shoulders, leaned down and said that he liked her very much.
He then tried to kiss her, she said. Pham is represented by lawyer
P.E. Ashokan. The trial is set for three days.
