The Kerala High Court on Monday, January 20, granted interim anticipatory bail to Reporter Live's consulting editor Arun Kumar K and reporter Shabas Ahammed, who have been booked under sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
During the hearing, Justice PV Kunhikrishnan reportedly questioned the basis of the case. According to a LiveLaw report, the judge orally asked the State, “Why are you registering this case? The victim has no case ... They are journalists.”
The duo was charged under Section 11(1) of the POCSO Act, which pertains to sexual harassment and making sexually explicit gestures towards children. The case stems from a scripted video shot during the Kerala State School Arts Festival (Kalolsavam), where Arun Kumar and Shabas participated in a tele-skit involving a schoolgirl.
The video begins with Arun teasing Shabas about a schoolgirl performing Oppana, a traditional dance form, asking, “Did you see that Oppana girl again?” The skit, designed to resemble a movie scene, features flirtatious dialogues and a romantic song from the 2012 Malayalam film Ustad Hotel. It concludes with a teacher instructing the dancers to move ahead.
The complaint leading to the case was filed by KV Manoj Kumar, chairperson of the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights. Earlier, on January 10, the commission had sought an explanation from the channel regarding the video.
In their anticipatory bail plea, the petitioners argued that the video was a tele-skit created with the consent of the child, her parents, and her teacher. They also alleged that the case was politically motivated, pointing out that Reporter Live had recently published stories critical of political parties.