According to the police, Devadas, who owns a moderately sized hotel in the district, was accused of barging into the room of a woman employee at her rented house on Saturday night. His accomplices, Riyas and Suresh, who were with him during the alleged assault attempt, remain at large, and a manhunt is underway to apprehend them.

The victim, a native of Payyannur in Kannur, had joined Devadas’s hotel a few months ago. In her statement, she said the trio forcibly entered her room while she was watching a video game on her phone. With no other way to escape, she jumped from the first floor, sustaining serious injuries.

Hearing her cries, neighbours and local residents rushed to the spot and shifted her to a nearby hospital. She suffered fractures in her hip and hand but is currently in stable condition at a medical college hospital, sources said.

Police confirmed that Devadas has been booked under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and that his arrest will be formally recorded soon.