Laser-assisted multiphoton rovibrational excitation of a diatomic molecule due to an ion impact is studied using elliptically polarized radiation, taken in the dipole approximation. The laser molecule interactions are treated non-perturbatively. The utility of our formalism is illustrated by computing the cross-sections for vibration-rotation transitions vj -> v'j' under ion-molecule collision. Results pertaining to the affect of laser parameters (polarization, frequency and intensity) which strongly effect the dynamics of the collision are also presented. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.