After Dileep, now more accused want access to visuals in Kerala actor assault case

In what seems to be a combined tactic to delay the trial proceedings in Kerala actor assault case, more accused persons have now approached the trial court in Ernakulam seeking to examine the controversial visuals in the case.

First accused Sunil NS aka Pulsar Suni, second accused Martin Antony and third accused Manikandan B, on Tuesday filed request to the Additional Special Sessions Court in Ernakulam. 

It was in February 2017 that a leading Malayalam female actor was abducted and sexually assaulted in a moving vehicle in Kochi. Malayalam actor Dileep is the eighth accused in the case and alleged to be the mastermind of the crime, which he committed allegedly to take vengeance on the survivor for personal reasons. 

Meanwhile, the trial court on Monday stated that Dileep can examine the controversial memory card visuals on Thursday. Though Dileep’s counsel informed the court about the expert who will examine the visuals, they have requested the expert’s name to be kept confidential. As the prosecution objected to this, the court stated that the details of the expert should be handed over to the prosecution. As per reports, the expert is from outside the state.

Dileep has already dragged the trial proceedings from the start by going to Supreme Court demanding the controversial memory card visuals of the survivor’s assault. Following this, the Supreme Court had stayed trial proceedings in the case for six months. The SC then in November rejected Dileep’s plea to get a copy of the visuals but instead allowed him to examine it in the presence of a trial court.

Finally, when the preliminary hearing of the defence, which is part of the pre-trial proceedings, began at the Ernakulam Additional Special Sessions Court in December, Dileep again approached the court, this time, demanding to get a copy of third party visuals stored on the phones and computers that were seized from the accused persons. 

Despite both Justice Honey M Varghese, the trial judge, and the prosecution stating that those visuals were of people who are not connected with the case and that it even includes private contents, Dileep’s counsel has been adamant that they get the visuals. The trial court on December 11 stated that Dileep will not be given a copy of the digital contents but can examine it in the court’s presence. 

Significantly, it may be noted that Dileep has already examined the controversial memory card visuals twice before. Still, he approached SC demanding access to visuals as part of his delay tactics.

It is against this backdrop, that three more accused have now approached the trial court demanding access to the visuals.

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