Kerala court grants bail to actor-MLA Mukesh in sexual abuse case

Several FIRs have been registered against many well-known Malayalam film personalities.

Kochi Islands:

A Kochi court on Thursday granted interim bail to rape-accused actor and CPI(M) MP M Mukesh and small-time actor Edavela Babu, who has been arrested for sexual assault.

“The petition is allowed,” Ernakulam District and Sessions Judge Honey M Varghese said in the order allowing the anticipatory bail applications of Mukesh and Babu.

The rape allegation against Mukesh was made by a female actor who also made allegations of sexual abuse against actors Babu and Jayasurya and others.

Following the woman’s accusation, an FIR was registered under Section 376 (rape) of the Penal Code against Mukesh. Mukesh claimed that the charges against him arose because he did not submit to the complainant’s blackmail attempts.

Several FIRs have been registered against many well-known Malayalam film personalities, following allegations of sexual harassment against several directors and actors, in the wake of revelations in the Justice K Hema Commission report.

The commission was set up by the Kerala government following the 2017 sexual assault case of an actress and the report that exposed cases of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam cinema industry.

After allegations of sexual harassment and exploitation were made against several actors and directors, the state government on August 25 announced the formation of a seven-member special investigation team to probe the allegations.

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