The man is accused of kissing and hugging the child.

A 46-year-old worker has gone on trial at a Dubai court after he allegedly molested a 5-year-old girl while she played outside away from her parents.

The public prosecution records show the Indian worker molested the Iranian girl while she played outside her parents' house in Al Barsha. He is believed to have kissed and hugged on two different occasions. The victim's mother came to learn about the incidents by coincidence on March 8.

The man denied a molestation charge at the Court of First Instance.

The girl's father, a 44-year-old Iranian manager, said he was at his place at a residential complex on March 9 when he heard from his wife about what the accused did to their daughter. "My wife told me that as she was with my sister and our girl in car heading to a park at 6 pm, she (my wife) drove to give that worker the extra food. Our daughter, who felt suddenly scared and hid behind the back seat, then told her mother that the worker's breath smelt awful. My wife asked her how she knew that, to which the victim answered that he had kissed her on her lips on two different occasions."

The father then checked with his daughter about the incident. "She confirmed that worker had kissed her on the lips when she was with the neighbours' daughter near the parking lot. On March 13, my wife and I reported the worker to his foreman. The latter then brought him before us and my girl identified him," the father told the prosecutor.

The family then went to the police station to lodge a complaint. "When our girl recounted what happened with her, she felt so scared and would not enter the same room where the defendant was. She only entered after he was taken outside," the father said.