SC extends interim anticipatory bail of Malayalam actor Siddique in rape case

New Delhi, Oct 22 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Tuesday extended for two weeks the interim anticipatory bail to Malayalam actor Siddique, who faces alleged charges of raping a young actress.

A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and SC Sharma decided to extend the interim relief after Siddique's counsel sought time to file rejoinder arguments to the status report filed by the Kerala Police.

The Malayalam actor said that he appeared before the Investigating Officer in accordance with the previous apex court order. However, this was met with opposition from the other side.

The Kerala Police said that Siddique was misusing his liberty to destroy evidence and failed to cooperate with the ongoing probe.

Without entering into the contentions raised, the apex court adjourned the hearing for two weeks and in the meantime, ordered an extension of interim relief.

In an order passed on September 30, the Supreme Court issued notice on Siddiqui's plea for anticipatory bail and granted him interim pre-arrest bail.

"It is directed that in the event of arrest of the petitioner, he shall be released on bail, subject to the conditions that may be imposed by the trial court and subject to his joining the investigation and remaining present before the Investigating Officer as and when called upon to do so," the SC ordered.

A police case against Siddique was registered based on a complaint by an actress who accused him of raping her in a state-owned hotel in Thiruvananthapuram in 2016.

The actress, who initially hesitated to file a police complaint, later emailed the state police chief alleging that Siddique raped her after she refused to give in to his demands for sexual favours in exchange for a role in a Tamil movie.

When this revelation came, Siddique, who was recently elected as the General Secretary of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA), quit the post. After that, the entire Executive Committee, chaired by President Mohanlal, also resigned.

Siddique had contended that this particular actress had been harassing him since 2019 by making repeated claims on social media that he tried to molest her at a theatre in 2016, and after the Justice Hema Committee report was published, she made a more serious allegation of rape at a different place in the same year.

Trouble began for Siddique when on September 24, the Kerala High Court rejected his anticipatory bail.

In a few hours, Siddique went missing and police were unable to trace and arrest him. He re-surfaced after September 30 when the apex court granted him bail and asked him to present himself before the probe team.

In the wake of the explosive Justice Hema Committee report on the condition of women in the Malayalam film industry, released in August, a storm of allegations was unleashed against its leading figures.

As a few former actresses publicly revealed their bad experiences, police were quick to act, registering 11 FIRs against various film personalities.