The Women's Commission in Kerala has filed a suo motu case against TV anchor and Bigg Boss contestant Sabu for his allegedly inappropriate comments against former Yuva Morcha leader Lasitha Palakkal. The case has reportedly been filed following reports of the incident on the news.
In a Facebook post about the incident, the former Yuva Morcha leader Lasitha, alleged that the police has failed to act on her complaint and arrest Sabu. Reports stating that Sabu has connections with the ruling CPI (M) also did the rounds, following this allegation.
"If women complain against the same person (Sabu), police say that he is a absconding and wash their hands off the case. But the same man appears on a channel in Kerala (Bigg Boss) suddenly. The police and ruling party turn a blind eye towards this," Lasitha's Facebook post read.
Lasitha also wrote that she will file a complaint with the DGP of the state as a last resort. If her grievances still go unaddressed after this, she said that she will protest before the Chief Minister's office in Thiruvananthapuram.
"Finally I have decided to directly file a complaintwith the DGP. If the channel is called up and asked. 2 days are more than enough to nab the person who is residing in a locked house to shoot for the reality show. If the police fail to act within the next four days, within this month I have decided to stage a protest in front of the Chief Minister's office. This is my personal opinion," her post reads.
Several users took to social media to hit out at the Kerala police and CM Pinarayi Vijayan, who also holds the Home Ministry portfolio. Memes were posted online stating that Big Boss was a safe haven for criminals like Sabu to evade action.
Following the news making headlines in the state, the women's commission has asked the District Police Chief of Kannur to investigate the incident and submit a report following the enquiry.
The police, however, maintained that they have registered an FIR based on Lasitha's complaint.
Panur Sub-inspector told TNM that Sabu has been booked under sections 354 (A) of IPC and 120 of Kerala Police Act (KP). He has, however, not been charged under relevant sections of the IT Act.
"We are still verifying whether the Facebook account belongs to Sabu. It could very well be a fake profile using his photo. So, we cannot jump the gun and arrest him based on a complaint. We need to first verify if it is Sabu who posted the offensive comments. We have handed over the case to the cybercrime department," the SI said.