Malayalam actress molestation case: Actor Dileep moves HC seeking bail

Mumbai: Popular Malayalam actor Dileep,arrested in connection with a case of plotting the abduction and sexual assault of a noted South Indian actress in February today moved the Kerala High Court seeking bail.

The court had dismissed his bail application on July 24 after finding that the investigation in the case was progressing and the mobile phone, stated by the prosecution as a key evidence in the case, had not been recovered.

The actor in his fresh plea today submitted that the scenario has completely changed and he is not the kingpin of any criminal conspiracy or even a participant therein.

The petitioner said he is not the perpetrator of any criminal offence.

"He is only the unfortunate victim of an orchestrated media campaign and proceedings of a group of police officers acting on the pre-conceived notion of guilt of the petitioner and wanting to implicate him as an accused," the petition said.

"Continued detention will not serve any useful purpose for further investigation, if any, and that being so his further detention is unjust," the petitioner submitted.

The petitioner said in his entire life, he has never seen, met or talked with prime accused in the case Pulsar Suni.

He never knew him by name or face and there is not even a remote possibility of any such person meeting him at any point of time. He alleged that there was a 'large-scale conspiracy' hatched by a small but powerful section of film industry and certain others who could manage police, media and political leaders to spread utter falsehood and malicious stories about him for months together.

It ultimately resulted in his being implicated and arraigned as accused in the case about three months after the submission of the final report against the accused in the actress abduction and molestation case.

The actor also submitted that his continued detention was delaying the shooting and release of movies affecting the livelihood of people associated with them.

He was arrested on July 10 and since then for the last more than a month he is in custody.

"The accused is influential and is likely to tamper with the evidence if bail is granted at this stage," the court had said while rejecting his bail application earlier.

Dileep, charged under various sections of the IPC, including for hatching criminal conspiracy for abduction and assault of the actress in a moving car on February 17, is currently lodged in a jail in his home town Aluva.

The police have claimed that the conspiracy to abduct and assault the actress and film the act was hatched by Dileep and Pulsar Suni, the prime accused in the case.

In their remand application, they had also claimed that Dileep had a grudge against the actress for letting his former wife know about his alleged affairs and had hatched a conspiracy to take revenge way back in 2013.

Six persons, including Pulsar Suni, have been arrested in connection with the actress abduction and molestation case.

The actress, who has worked in Tamil and Telugu films, was abducted and allegedly molested inside her car for two hours by the accused, who had forced their way into the vehicle and later escaped in a busy area here.