The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted anticipatory bail to Malayalam actor Siddique in the rape case filed against him by a young actress.
The case came into limelight, particularly following the release of the Hema Committee report, which highlighted various issues within the Malayalam film industry.
A Bench of Justices Bela M. Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma upheld the interim anticipatory bail granted earlier to the actor, with certain conditions.
The top court noted that the delay in filing the complaint, coupled with the fact that the complainant had made public statements on social media, was concerning.
Siddique was directed to cooperate with the ongoing investigation and surrender his passport to the authorities. Further conditions will be determined by the trial court.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing Siddique, questioned the delay, pointing out that the complainant had posted on Facebook in 2018 but did not approach the police until much later.
Rohatgi also argued that the actress had made similar allegations against other individuals in the film industry.
The Kerala government’s lawyer, Senior advocate Ranjit Kumar, defended the complainant’s position, explaining that the delay in filing the FIR.
The case revolves around allegations made by an actress, who claims that Siddique sexually assaulted her in 2016.
However, she only filed the complaint in August 2024, nearly eight years after the alleged incident.
(Inputs By Sambhav Sharma)
