Kochi, March 10: The Kerala High Court on Tuesday issued notice to actor Dileep and nine others on an appeal filed by the state government against the trial court verdict in the 2017 actress assault case.
The High Court admitted the appeal, in which the state has challenged the acquittal of Dileep and three others. It has also sought enhancement of the punishment awarded to the six men who were convicted and sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment in the case.
A bench of Justices A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Jobin Sebastian issued notices to all 10 accused who faced trial, according to a government lawyer associated with the case.
Apart from Dileep, who was named as the eighth accused, the trial court had acquitted Charley Thomas, Sanil Kumar alias Mesthri Sanil and Sarath. The first six accused — Sunil N S alias Pulsar Suni, Martin Antony, Manikandan B, Vijesh V P, Salim H and Pradeep — were convicted and sentenced.
In its appeal, the state has argued that the acquittal of Dileep and the three others was “wholly illegal and unmerited” and sent a wrong message to society. It has urged the High Court to set aside the acquittals and hold them guilty of the offences for which the first six accused were convicted.
The state has also sought a stricter sentence for the convicted men, arguing that the punishment imposed by the trial court was inadequate considering the seriousness of the crime, the trauma suffered by the victim and the wider impact on society.
According to the prosecution, Dileep had allegedly conspired with the prime accused, Sunil, and instructed him to sexually assault the victim and record the act, allegedly due to personal enmity and vengeance.
The case relates to the abduction and sexual assault of a multilingual actress inside a moving car on February 17, 2017, an incident that had triggered widespread outrage in Kerala. Dileep was later arrested during the investigation, but was acquitted by the trial court after a lengthy trial.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on a PTI copy. Only minor edits have been made for clarity and presentation.)