Malayalam actor Baburaj was granted anticipatory bail by the Kerala High Court on Monday, November 25, in connection with allegations of sexual harassment. The case is part of a wave of accusations that emerged following the public release of the Justice Hema Committee report earlier this year. Justice C.S. Dias, presiding over Baburaj’s bail plea, directed the actor to cooperate with the investigation team and ruled that he should be released on bail if arrested.
The complaint, filed by a woman who worked at a resort owned by Baburaj, alleged rape and sexual harassment between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2019. However, the FIR was lodged on September 2, 2024, nearly five years after the alleged incidents. The complainant attributed the delay to fear and emotional distress, stating she only gained the courage to file the complaint after remarrying in 2023. The court expressed skepticism about this explanation.
In its ruling, the court observed prima facie evidence of a consensual relationship between Baburaj and the complainant and referenced the Supreme Court’s ruling in Siddique v. State of Kerala, which emphasized considering delays in filing complaints. The court stated that Baburaj’s custodial interrogation was not necessary and granted anticipatory bail, subject to conditions.
The Justice Hema Committee report, submitted in 2019 but made public only in August 2024, has triggered a surge of #MeToo allegations in the Malayalam film industry. The report, which examines workplace challenges faced by women in the industry, has emboldened several survivors to come forward with accusations against prominent actors.
Baburaj is among several individuals accused, including Mukesh, Siddique, Edavela Babu, Jayasurya, Ranjith, and Maniyanpillai Raju, all of whom have secured bail.
In related cases, the court has highlighted the complexities of delayed complaints in sexual harassment cases. For instance, while granting bail to actor Siddique earlier this year, the Supreme Court questioned delays in filing complaints despite the survivor’s ability to post on social media. However, Justice Dias, in a prior denial of Siddique’s anticipatory bail, acknowledged the psychological and societal barriers that survivors face. “Victims of sexual abuse and assault may experience psychological, emotional and social barriers that feed the delay in reporting the matter, which necessarily has to be understood in the context of the trauma…. The survivor must also have gone through great turmoil, and only after serious thought would she decide to lodge the FIR,” he had said.
The Hema Committee report’s findings have become a pivotal document in the ongoing reckoning within the Malayalam film industry, shedding light on entrenched gender inequities and workplace harassment.
