In the female actor abduction and sexual assault case, the Kerala High Court on Friday asked the prosecution how filmmaker Balachandra Kumar’s revelations about Dileep would help them in the trial, according to The Hindu.
Justice Kausar Edappagath raised this question while hearing the arguments on the petition filed by the prosecution, challenging the orders of the Ernakulam Additional Special Sessions Court, which had rejected the application to recall or summon witnesses for re-examination.
The court observed that the petition for re-examination of witnesses was raised long after their examination was finished, questioning the prosecution’s need for making the request. It noted that valid reasons were necessary for re-examining witnesses. Reserving the verdict on the petition, the court reiterated that the rights of the accused and the victims should be protected.
While the trial in the case was nearing completion after five long years, the state government on January 5, moved to the Supreme Court, seeking an extension of the trial by six months, after Balachandra Kumar raised some serious allegations against Dileep.
Additionally, in a major twist, one of the witnesses who had turned hostile during the earlier trial, has now informed the prosecution through a friend that he is ready to reveal the ‘truth’. The identity of the witness has not yet been disclosed, Onmanorama reported.
In December 2021, director Balachandra Kumar submitted a complaint to CM Pinarayi Vijayan, in which he revealed that Dileep had influenced some of the significant witnesses in the case, who had turned hostile during the trial.
According to the report, a witness named Sagar was mentioned in Kumar’s complaint. He had given a detailed explanation of the circumstances in which Sagar had turned hostile in court, under the influence of the accused.
He also alleged that Dileep had watched the video of the sexual assault at his house and personally knew the prime accused in the case, Pulsar Suni. The filmmaker sought police protection as he was living under the fear of threat to his life, as he relinquished to direct Dileep’s film.
Recommended
The special investigation team has sought legal advice for conducting a lie-detector test on Balachandra Kumar to check the authenticity of allegations, as the trial has come to its final stage.
On the other hand, police recently recorded the statement of Pulsar Suni’s mother, as part of the new probe. She submitted a letter written by Suni to her in 2018. In the letter, Suni revealed that he had executed the actions based on Dileep’s order, according to Mathrubhumi. He also alleged that a few other people in the film industry were involved in the actor’s abduction case. Suni handed over the letter to his mother on May 7, 2018, at the court.
Police have taken the letter in custody, to examine its authenticity.