KOCHI: Probing the molestation of a young actor at a shopping mall here, the Kochi City Police on Friday identified two men who were allegedly behind the incident. The CCTV visuals collected from the mall helped the police zero in on the culprits. Kalamassery Circle Inspector P R Santhosh told TnIe that a detailed probe was on to nab the accused.
“We have taken statements from the actor and her mother,” he said. The incident happened on Thursday evening when the actor, accompanied by her mother and sister, visited the shopping mall at Edappally. The actor herself revealed the harrowing experience through a social media post, saying she is not one to rant on social media but the incident was something she couldn’t let go of.
“Two men walked past me in a generously spaced aisle. One of them, not so accidentally, grazed his hand on my back while walking past me. As it caught me off guard, I couldn’t react immediately. I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt but you know when something is just not right, you feel it,” the actor’s post read.
She pointed out the scary situations a woman has to encounter in her daily life. “Being a woman has been very tiring, to be on guard every minute as you step out of your house. It’s all because of these sick men. You take away our safety. You take away our comfort and the joy of our womanhood. I despise you,” she wrote.
Women’s panel registers suo motu case over harassment of actor
The actor said her sister, who saw what the man did clearly as she was standing not so far away, came to her and asked if she was okay. “i was clearly not. The fact that it looked deliberate even for her made it clear that i was not imagining this. i was blank for a minute trying to process this. i walked towards them but they completely ignored me. i made sure that he knew i understood. And they both left the aisle immediately,” the actor’s post read.
The mall was not too crowded when the incident happened, she posted. she further wrote that the two men came to her and her sister again and spoke to her about the films in which she acted. “We turned a cold shoulder and asked the guy to leave.
When my mom walked towards us, they left,” she said. Reacting to the incident, state Women’s Commission chairperson M C Josephine said the panel had registered a case suo motu and appropriate action will be taken against those who targeted the young actor. The commission has sought a report from the police on the incident, she said.