New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday extended the interim protection from arrest granted to Malayalam film actor Siddique in an alleged rape case.
The matter came up before a bench comprising Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma. Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Siddique, submitted before the bench that he has a bad throat and sought some time to argue the matter.
At the beginning of the hearing, Rohatgi submitted that the investigating agency is repeatedly asking the actor about his phone and laptop which he had in 2016. Rohatgi made it clear that his client does not have that now, and also Siddique
has met the complainant only once.
Rohatgi said the probe agency is also seeking his passport and Aadhaar number. Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, representing Kerala Police, said Siddique has been appearing before it but is not cooperating in the probe. Kumar submitted that he is giving evasive replies.
After a brief hearing in the matter, the bench extended its interim order of September 30 in which it granted him interim protection from arrest in the case and directed him to cooperate in the investigation.
In October, the apex court extended the interim protection from arrest for two weeks. Kerala Police, in its status report, has alleged that the actor was hindering the investigation and had destroyed electronic devices besides deleting social media accounts.
The case against Siddique arose in the wake of the Justice Hema Committee report on sexual harassment and gender inequality against women in Malayalam cinema.
The complainant, a young actor, had raised the allegation through the media, following the release of the report. The woman filed a complaint with Thiruvananthapuram city police and an FIR was registered under sections 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code. The complainant alleged that the crime occurred in 2016 at a Thiruvananthapuram hotel. Siddique has denied the allegations, calling it a "criminal conspiracy to tarnish the reputation of the entire Malayalam film industry."
