Hema Committee: Malayalam actors Jayasoorya, Maniyanpilla Raju booked for sexual assault

Malayalam actors Jayasoorya and Maniyanpilla Raju

Separate cases have been registered in Kerala against popular Malayalam actors Jayasoorya and Maniyanpilla Raju following an allegation raised by a female actor that they had sexually assaulted her, police said on Thursday.

A senior police official from Ernakulam said an FIR under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code was registered at the Fort Kochi police station against Raju. The Cantonment police in Thiruvananthapuram confirmed that a case under the same section was registered against Jayasoorya.

Multiple FIRs have been registered against many high-profile Malayalam film personalities following allegations of sexual harassment against various directors and actors in the wake of revelations in the Justice K Hema Committee report. The complainant, who has appeared in a handful of movies, levelled sexual abuse allegations against prominent actors M Mukesh, who is also an MLA, Jayasurya and Maniyanpilla Raju, as well as small-time actor Idavela Babu who held a prominent role in the actors' association.

In a Facebook post, the woman actor said, "I am writing to report a series of incidents of physical and verbal abuse I suffered at the hands of 1 Mukesh 2 Maniyan Pilla Raju, 3 Idavela Babu, 4 Jayasoorya (Jayasurya), 5 adv Chandrasekaran, 6 production controller Noble and Vichu, in the Malayalam film industry. In 2013, I was subjected to physical and verbal abuse by these individuals while working on a project. I tried to cooperate and continue working, but the abuse became unbearable."

A rape case was registered last night against prominent Malayalam actor and ruling CPI(M) MLA Mukesh following the female actor's allegation that he sexually assaulted her years ago. Reportedly, cases were also registered against the other accused too.

On Wednesday, Thiruvananthapuram Museum police had booked actor Sidhique for allegedly raping an actress in a hotel eight years ago.

The first case, under IPC Section 354 (assault or criminal force on woman with intent to outrage her modesty), was against director Ranjith on a complaint by a female actor from West Bengal regarding an incident which occurred in 2009.

Following the allegation by the actor, Ranjith had resigned from his post as chairman of the state-run Kerala Chalachitra Academy.

Sidhique had also resigned as general secretary of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA) following the allegations against him.

The Justice Hema Committee was constituted by the Kerala government after the 2017 actress assault case, and its report revealed instances of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam cinema industry.

Amidst allegations of sexual harassment and exploitation cropping up against several actors and directors, the state government on August 25 announced the establishment of a seven-member special investigation team to probe them. Subsequently, more complaints surfaced.