Two complaints of sexual assault have been raised against Dalit rapper Hirandas Murali, who goes by the stage name Vedan, in emails written to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The complaints come weeks after a case of rape was filed against the rapper by a Kozhikode-based doctor at the Thrikkakkara police station in Ernakulam last month.
Two women have in separate emails written to CM Pinarayi about the alleged sexual abuse they faced in 2020. One woman said that Vedan had met her, showing interest in her work, and that she was drawn by the Dalit politics in his music. She alleged that he later began to sexually assault her, spewing profanities and threatening her if she refused. When she broke up with him, he spread rumours about her among their friend circles, which affected her studies and opportunities, she wrote.
The other complainant came in contact with Vedan when she began working on a paper on Dalit music. She wrote about how she wanted to get in touch with a musician from her own community while speaking to singers and writers from different parts of India as part of her work.
She met Vedan on December 20, 2020. During the meeting, on the pretext of talking about his songs, he allegedly tried to sexually assault her and forcefully kissed her. Though she escaped, she said she had to drop the work on her paper, not wanting to get in touch with Vedan again.
Both the complainants said that they were wary about going to the police because of the lackadaisical manner in which an earlier complainant’s case was handled, and how her personal details were leaked to the media. They requested the CM to grant them an appointment so they could directly meet him and talk about their complaint.
Both the women had come out with their #MeToo statements against Vedan in 2021, they stated in their emails.
Three months ago, amid a controversy surrounding back-to-back cases against Vedan for possessing ganja and a suspected leopard tooth, two survivors told TNM that he had never apologised to them personally.
Vedan has been absconding since the rape case was filed at the Thrikkakkara station.