The Museum police in Thiruvananthapuram have registered a first information report (FIR) after an aspiring woman actor accused veteran Malayalam actor and former general secretary of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) Siddique of allegedly raping her at a hotel in Thiruvananthapuram in 2016.
Mr. Siddique has also been booked on charges of illegally detaining and threatening the woman. The serious section entails arrest and remand.
In a statement on Tuesday (August 27, 2024), Mr. Siddique denied the woman’s accusations. His legal team will likely move the Principal Sessions Court, Thiruvananthapuram, for anticipatory bail.
The woman was one among the several survivors who came on social and mainstream media to narrate their alleged exploitation at the hands of Mollywood bigwigs.
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The recent publication of the 2019 Hema Committee report, which documented scores of instances of sexual exploitation in the industry, opened a Pandora’s box of accusations, with several women appearing in mainstream and social media to narrate their alleged abuse.
The Kerala government formed a special investigation team (SIT) comprising four women IPS officers. Several survivors approached the unit with complaints, prompting the registration of cases.
On Monday (August 26, 2024), the Kochi police booked former Kerala Chalachitra Academy chairperson and noted director Ranjith on the charge of outraging the modesty of a West Bengal-based social activist and woman actor in a hotel several years back. Mr. Ranjith denied the accusation and said he would seek legal recourse. Earlier, the bombshell “disclosure” cost Mr. Ranjith his academy post.
Meanwhile, another relatively lesser-known woman actor had put the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government on the defence by accusing actor and two-time Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] legislator from Kollam Assembly constituency, M. Mukesh, of attempting to coerce her into sexual submission. She filed a police complaint, prompting calls for the legislator’s resignation. The Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have launched an agitation to press for Mr. Mukesh’s exit.
So far, various police stations across the State have registered 17 sexual abuse cases based on statements given by women in the film industry, mostly relatively lesser-known actors, make-up assistants and those aspiring for cinema roles. The complainants also include a budding scriptwriter. The State police have asked the Station House Officers (SHO) to transfer the cases to the SIT.
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