After a Malayalam filmmaker made several allegations on the actor-assault case in Kerala involving accused actor Dileep, the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) has reacted asking if the Kerala government and police were taking note of the revelations. The man who made the revelations - director Balachandrakumar - alleged that Dileep knew the main accused in the case - Pulsar Suni - closely and he had seen the two interact. He also alleged that Dileep had a copy of the video of the female actor’s sexual assault and that he had tried to influence a crucial witness.
The WCC in their Facebook post asks if the law and order machinery in the state is "looking into this key testimony from Mr Balachandra Kumar which has come out in the media recently." They also ask if the actions alleged by Balachandrakumar 'amount to illegal actions' such as bribery and/ or intimidation of witnesses. The WCC also raises concerns on the safety of the director, who has requested police protection because of alleged threats to his life.
Balachandrakumar told TNM that he had been in talks with Dileep for working on a movie called Pickpocket when he observed Dileep's actions. Among other things, the director also alleged that Dileep had a video copy of the sexual assault of the woman actor before it was produced before the court. TNM found that at least two of his allegations can become crucial to the prosecution's case.
The attack of the woman actor happened in February 2017 when she was abducted and sexually assaulted in a car in Kochi. Pulsar Suni was identified as one of the main culprits and arrested only days later. In July the same year, actor Dileep, another accused in the case, was arrested. In the chargesheet, it was alleged that Dileep paid money to Pulsar Suni to attack the woman actor and record visuals of it. He remained in prison for nearly three months before getting bail.
Since the revelations made by Balachandrakumar came out a few days ago, most of the mainstream media had not given any coverage of the developments. The WCC questions their silence. “Why are the majority of mainstream media not giving these developments adequate attention and looking for the truth in this matter?”
"Time and again, in this excruciating fight for justice, many such questions need to be asked and answered to learn the truth. #Avalkoppam," says the post.