Actor Dileep Case: Kerala HC Permits Cross-Examination of Witnesses

Earlier, the woman actor had written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan about the tardy pace of the trial.

The Kerala High Court on Monday, 17 January, allowed the prosecution to examine five additional witnesses and re-examine three witnesses in the case relating to the sexual assault on a female actor, in which Malayalam actor Dileep is an accused.

(Image: Kamran Akhter/The Quint)

The Kerala High Court on Monday, 17 January, allowed the prosecution to examine five additional witnesses and re-examine three witnesses in the case relating to the sexual assault on a female actor, in which Malayalam actor Dileep is an accused.

The high court was hearing appeals filed by the prosecution challenging the orders of the Ernakulam Additional Special Sessions Court which had rejected the prosecution’s applications to re-examine witnesses after actor Balachandra Kumar had released audio recordings of people including Dileep trying to sabotage the case and obstruct the trial, LiveLaw reported.

After the clips surfaced, the actor and five others were booked on 9 January under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including sections 116 (abetment), 118 (concealing design to commit offence), 120B (criminal conspiracy), 506 (criminal intimidation), and 34 (criminal act done by several people), PTI reported.

The new First Information Report (FIR) is based on incriminating audio clips allegedly of Dileep, his brother, and brother-in-law, among others, discussing a conspiracy to murder the investigating officer and Deputy Superintendent Baiju Paulose.

The survivor of the sexual assault, an actress who has worked in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films, was abducted and allegedly molested in a moving vehicle by the accused on February 2017.

Earlier this month, Balachandra Kumar had further claimed that Dileep, despite being an accused in the case, had seen the visuals of the assault before they were produced before the court.

The female actor had recently written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan about the tardy pace of the trial in the case.

Meanwhile, Justice Kauser Edappagath also directed the State government to see that a new Special Public Prosecutor is appointed or make some other arrangements to conduct the cases, examine witnesses, and the produce documents within 10 days, Hindu reported.

The high court on Friday, 14 January, did not pass any order for granting Dileep and other accused protection from arrest after the prosecution gave an undertaking that they will not be held until 18 January, when the actor anticipatory bail plea is to be heard again.

(With inputs from LiveLaw and The Hindu.)