Supreme Court seeks Kerala govt’s response on ‘examination of witnesses’

The Supreme Court on Tuesday directed the counsel appearing for the Kerala government to seek directions on how many witnesses have been examined so far in the actress attack case, in which Malayalam film actor Dileep is an accused. The court was hearing the bail plea of ​​Pulsar Soni, another accused in the case.

A bench comprising Justices Abhay S Oka and AG Masih adjourned the bail hearing of accused Pulsar Suni by two weeks.

The Supreme Court has been monitoring the progress of the trial from time to time. The court today noted that Pulsar soni has been in jail for almost seven years. The court has asked the Kerala government to file a copy of the statements of the witnesses within two weeks.

In May 2023, the Supreme Court ordered that the trial be completed by July 2023. The court later extended the deadline to April 2024.

In February, another bench of the Supreme Court refused to interfere with the examination of witnesses in the ongoing trial before the Ernakulam court. This came after the accused in the case, prominent Malayalam actor Dileep, objected to the prosecution’s move to examine 41 additional witnesses just before the January 31 deadline for the trial. Dileep alleged that it was an attempt by the prosecution to stall the trial.

The matter relates to the 2017 kidnapping and sexual assault case of a Kerala actress.

The case came to light in 2017, when a popular Malayalam actress came forward with allegations of kidnapping and sexual assault in Kochi. The Kerala Police investigation team zeroed in on actor Dileepa and 7 others. Following this, the actor was arrested on charges of conspiracy to carry out the sexual assault.

The surviving actress later revealed herself on social media, shocking the Kerala film industry.

Following the uproar, the Kerala government set up the Justice Hema Committee in 2017 to look into the issues faced by women in the Malayalam film industry. The report was recently published on August 19, 2024.

The 235-page report has been released after redacting the names of witnesses and accused. The report notes that the Malayalam film industry is in the grip of certain male producers, directors and actors, who were described as a “mafia” by a prominent actor, as they could keep anyone out of the industry. The report has revealed glaring details of abuse and sexual assault in the Kerala film industry.

The Kerala High Court has already asked the Kerala government what it plans to do about the offences mentioned in the Hema Commission report.