Hema Commission report justifies special investigation into allegations of sexual harassment, say legal experts

According to legal experts, the publication of the Justice Hema committee’s report on the problems faced by women in Malayalam cinema has prompted a special inquiry into allegations of sexual harassment.

The panel, which had stated that it had “avoided recording the names and other details of the witnesses in their statements,” concluded that it was “satisfied that women face sexual harassment even from very well-known people in the film industry, who were named before the committee. Some witnesses “even produced video and audio clips, screenshots of WhatsApp messages, etc., to establish the fact that there is a demand for sex before entering the cinema and that certain people in the industry persuade them to make themselves available for sex.”

Though no FIR could be registered on the basis of the committee’s report, a former judge of the Kerala High Court said the government should either accept or reject the report. In case the report is accepted, an investigating agency should register an FIR and investigate the criminal acts, he said.

The state government had earlier ordered a CBI inquiry into the findings of the Justice Sivarajan Commission after accepting its report, he said.

‘Assemble SIT’

Asaf Ali, former Director General of Public Prosecution, said it was the duty of the state government and the state police chief to set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the allegations of sexual harassment, which is a cognizable offence. The report itself has confirmed that there have been cases of sexual harassment, which is a serious criminal offence. The SIT will go through all the documents and evidence collected by the commission during the investigation, he said.

Senior advocate BG Harindranath, also a former state secretary, noted that the government will form an opinion on the report and investigate the criminal acts, including the alleged case of sexual exploitation of women. The Supreme Court had earlier clarified that no FIR could be registered on the basis of a committee’s report. However, the government will order a criminal investigation into the statements made before the panel and also take steps to bring in legislation.

The police could register an FIR, appoint a judicial officer and investigate the alleged indecency violation of women. However, successful prosecution would depend on the available evidence and the determination of the women to stick to their earlier statements, he said.

Separate cases could not be booked for the offences of stalking, explicit sexual advances and voyeurism, as mentioned in the report, if committed before the amendment of the IPC, 2013, after the Nirbhaya case. The amendment had also included these acts under the purview of outraging the modesty of women, he said.

In addition to documents, audio and video clips, screenshots of WhatsApp chats and messages from the witnesses, the panel had collected documents and materials from other sources. All of these were suppressed by the authorities on the orders of A. Abdul Hakeem, the State Information Commissioner, who ordered that only a redacted version of the report be published.