Actress assault case: Kerala HC asks prosecution to file final report

The Kerala High Court on Tuesday asked the prosecution in the 2017 actress assault case as to why they have not completed the investigation and has asked them to file the final report.

The prosecution informed the court that it will take three more months to complete the probe.

This is in a plea submitted by the accused Malayalam actor Dileep seeking to suspend the further investigation into the case.

The High Court also considered the impleading application submitted by the survivor actress which contended that further investigation is necessary to arrive at the truth.

A single bench of Justice Kauser Edappagath said, "We have to consider that the Supreme Court has extended the deadline to conclude the trial four times already. It cannot be extended one month after another."

The prosecution further informed the court that 20 individuals have been examined as of now and that some digital evidence has been collected so far.

"The difficulty faced by the prosecution in winding up the trial soon was due to the time it takes to get reports from experts and due to the petitioner's non-cooperation. Dileep is extremely influential everywhere. He influences minds and has massive clout," they said.

In the plea, Dileep alleged that further probe was a willful attempt to protract the trial in that matter.

"A series of vindictive acts were being carried out by the police under the guise of further probe. Further probe was not permissible as a final report had been filed in November 2017, charges were framed in January 2020 and only one prosecution witness remained to be examined," the plea read.

Dileep is the eighth accused in the 2017 actress assault case for alleged conspiracy.

The case pertains that an actress who worked in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu films was allegedly abducted and molested inside her car by a group of men who had forced their way into the vehicle on the night of February 17, 2017.

( With inputs from ANI )

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