Kochi: The High Court on Tuesday has rejected a petition by actor Dileep seeking the copy of the memory card containing the visuals of the sexual ass-ault against a woman act-or. A single bench upheld the argument by the prosecution that giving the copy of the visuals to Dileep will adversely impact the privacy of the victim.
Dileep has sought the visuals on the ground that it was a document connected with the case and an accused in a case is entitled to have all documents linked with the case. The counsel for Dileep also stated that the visuals have been doctored and the sound of the woman actor altered. The accused has the right to verify the authenticity of the records to ensure a flawless trial, they added.
The counsel for the government has pointed out that the accused was sho-wn the visuals several times and report of the forensic lab about the au-thenticity of the visuals available could be examined if needed. The visuals are important evide-nce and the accused has no right to claim them. The counsel has also stated that Dileep is trying to delay the trial.
Upholding the arguments of the government counsel the single bench rejected the petition. The court has also observed that the right for privacy of the victim is more im-portant than the right of the accused for docume-nts in incidents of mass rape. The magistrate and sessions courts have earlier dismissed similar petitions by Dileep.
