Hema Committee impact: After Mukesh and Prakash, actor Siddique seeks anticipatory bail

Kochi: The long-delayed release of the explosive Justice Hema Committee report, which revealed how women artistes were sexually exploited in the Malayalam film industry, has unleashed a flood of complaints against top actors, sending them approaching courts for anticipatory bail.

On Monday, it was Siddique, the former General Secretary of the AMMA (Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes) who moved the Kerala High Court seeking anticipatory bail in a rape case filed against him by an actress.

Siddique, in his plea, said that the complainant has been harassing him since 2019 by making repeated claims on social media that he tried to sexually misbehave with her at a theatre in 2016. “It is clear that the defacto complainant is made aware that simple allegation of attempted sexual assault is a bailable offence, and therefore, the petitioner could not be taken into custody and it is in order to make out a case warranting arrest and detention of the petitioner that the defacto complainant has now come up with an allegation of rape,” his plea read.

Last week, actor-turned-CPI-M legislator Mukesh and director V. K.Pakash sought bail, and the former secured interim relief from arrest till Tuesday.

The Malayalam film industry’s ‘male hegemony’ came out in the open with the release of the Hema Committee report and as of now, FIRs have been registered against nine film personalities, which include Mukesh, Siddique, Jayasurya, Edavela Babu, Maniyan Pillai Raju, directors Ranjith, and Prakash, production executives Vichu and Noble after women actresses registered complaints.

The case against Siddique was registered on the basis of allegations made by an actress that he raped her at a state-run hotel in the state capital. Following her revelation, Siddique quit his AMMA post and a few days later, the entire 17-member AMMA executive, led by its President, superstar Mohanlal, stepped down, leaving the body, which has around 500 actors, headless.

With the AMMA office bearers stepping down and fissures out in the open in the Film Employees Federation of Kerala (FEFKA), the body of 21 different organisations, spanning from light boys to high-profile directors, the Malayalam film industry appears to have got a rude jolt.

All eyes are now on the fate of these bail applications, even when the seven-member police probe team, comprising four women IPS officials, are going forward taking statements from the victims, especially with Mukesh’s case coming up again on Tuesday. However, none of the accused have been summoned to appear before the probe team so far.

The Congress and the BJP parties are up in arms and have alleged the Pinarayi Vijayan government is hand in glove with the wrongdoers, even when they claim to be with the victims.

–IANS