THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Film maker and two-time MLA P T Kunju Muhammed's arrest was recorded by the Cantonment police on Tuesday in a sexual assault case registered on a complaint filed by a woman film director. He was later released as he had obtained pre-arrest bail from the principal sessions court.
The court had ordered that in case the accused was arrested, he should be released on bail. The accused reportedly denied the allegation before the investigators.
The police on December 7 registered a case against the director, who was the chairman of the committee to select films for the Malayalam Cinema Today section of the International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), for sexual harassment and outraging the modesty of a woman, which are non-bailable offences.
According to the complainant, a woman working in the film industry, the incident occurred at a city hotel in November during the screening to select films for the upcoming International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK).
Kunju Muhammed and the complainant were part of the committee to select films for the Malayalam Cinema Today section of the festival. Both were staying at the hotel. He allegedly invited the woman to his room and misbehaved with her, as per the complaint.
In his anticipatory bail plea, the accused had argued that the allegation was fabricated and was part of a conspiracy. The plea said the woman filed the complaint 21 days after the alleged incident, and that too not with the police but the CM, which was suspicious. The prosecution had strongly objected to the plea and said the woman had to discuss the matter with her relatives before filing the case.