Actor Kavya Madhavan, wife of actor Dileep, is likely to be summoned for interrogation in the female actor abduction and sexual assault case, according to Asianet News.
In February 2017, a female actor who predominantly works in Malayalam and Kannada cinema was abducted and sexually assaulted by a gang of men in a moving car en route to Kochi from Thrissur.
Dileep is one of the main accused in the case and is under trial as the chief conspirator. He was recently issued a notice to appear for questioning before the crime branch on Monday and it is said that Madhavan will be summoned after his interrogation.
Earlier, the first accused in the case, Pulsar Suni, had revealed that his ‘Madam’ was Madhavan. Suni said that he had sent the memory card that contained the visuals of the survivor to the Kochi office of Laksyah, a boutique owned by Madhavan.
According to the Asianet report, the investigation into Madhavan’s role in the case was dropped due to lack of evidence.
However, at the end of 2021, the case gained momentum after filmmaker Balachandra Kumar made some serious allegations against Dileep and his associates. He said that Dileep had watched the video of the sexual assault at his house and was connected to Pulsar Suni. Kumar further stated that the actor had influenced some of the significant witnesses in the case, who later turned hostile during the trial.
Kumar also alleged that a ‘VIP’ had handed over the tablet device containing visuals of the assault and added that Madhavan was at home when this happened.
Following Kumar’s allegations, a fresh probe was launched by the police in the case.
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Further investigation has revealed that the ‘VIP’ was Dileep’s friend Sharath, a hotelier in Aluva. Earlier this week, Sharath was questioned for almost three hours, during the course of which the investigators got some leads involving Madhavan. She is, therefore, expected to be quizzed regarding this after Dileep’s interrogation on Monday.
Meanwhile, in his upcoming interrogation session, Dileep will likely be questioned about the allegation that he illegally accessed the memory card containing visuals of the sexual assault, which was in court custody. He will also be quizzed about certain Whatsapp chats retrieved from his phone, which reportedly show that he had tried to influence the witnesses.
It may be noted that the investigating team has been ordered by the Kerala High Court to conclude the probe by April 15.
For a full timeline of the female actor abduction and assault case, see here.