The survivor in the 2017 actor assault case on Tuesday, February 15, filed an impleadment motion in the Kerala High Court in connection with accused actor Dileep’s petition in court against the further investigation being conducted in the case. The survivor has asked that the court hear her too, before passing any orders in the case. In view of the impleadment plea on behalf of the survivor, the high court adjourned the matter to February 21.
Dileep is the eighth accused in the actor assault case, and following revelations by filmmaker Balachandra Kumar, the police probing the case had sought time to conduct more investigations into the case. Dileep moved the court on February 2, calling this further investigation in the case a "willful attempt" to protract the trial in that matter.
The actor had contended that further investigation in that case was not permissible as a final report had been filed in November 2017, charges were framed in January 2020 and only one prosecution witness — one of the investigating officers — remained to be examined.
The petition has alleged that under the guise of further investigation, "a series of vindictive acts" were being carried out by the police.
The fresh investigation is being conducted after Balachandra Kumar, who said he was Dileep’s friend, claimed that the accused actor was in possession of the clip that had visuals of the sexual assault, even before the actor and his lawyers watched it at the magistrate’s chamber in December 2017. Balachandra Kumar had also claimed that the audio in the original clip was enhanced for Dileep’s viewing.
Dileep had said in his petition that the new investigation causes ‘prejudice to establish his defence,’ and his right to equality is being violated. He has added that this further investigation into the case, is ‘’malafide,” and an attempt to endlessly drag the proceedings. He has said that this will infringe his right to a fair and speedy trial.
What is ironic, however, is that while Dileep accuses the police of trying to delay the trial, over the years, Dileep himself has made several attempts to scuttle the probe and delay the trial in the case. Over the past five years, Dileep has approached various courts with various petitions — petitions to discharge himself, petitions to get visuals of the assault, petition to bar media reporting on the case, and many more. In fact, in 2018, just a year after the incident, the prosecution had submitted to the court a list of 11 instances when Dileep has tried to scuttle the trial in the case.