On Tuesday (10th September), the Kerala High Court came down heavily on the state government for failing to take prompt action against the sexual abuse unearthed by the Justice K Hema committee report on the working conditions of women in the Malayalam film industry.
The two-judge bench slammed the Left Front government emphasising that they are concerned with the state’s inaction, including not registering FIRs after the committee first submitted its report in 2019. The Court also reprimanded the state government saying that they had done nothing in 4 years except sitting on the report. While criticising the state government, the High Court also orally remarked that “silence is not an option”.
Notably, a special bench comprising Justices AK Jayasankaran Nambiar and C S Sudha is hearing several matters including a public interest litigation (PIL) petition seeking criminal action against those accused of sexual offences in the report.
The Special bench has directed the Kerala government to hand over the un-redacted version of the Justice Hema Committee Report to the Special Investigating Team (SIT). The Pinarayi Vijayan government had formed a seven-member SIT which is currently probing sexual crimes that have been reported in the wake of the publication of the report.
Key observations of the Kerala High Court
On Tuesday, September 10, the High Court noted that the Justice Hema Committee report was submitted to the government way back in 2019 and slammed the state government for its inaction. The court said, “We are primarily concerned with inaction of the state, including not registering FIRs… You have done nothing in 4 years except sit on the report.”
The court stressed that “silence” was not an option for the government.
The Court remarked, “When the report revealed such a malady in the system, what is the bare minimum that the State government should have done? We are taken aback by the lack of action by the State government. It is one thing to assure the confidentiality of the women who spoke to the committee and even those who have been accused may have the right to privacy. But dehors of this, when such issues are revealed in the report, shouldn’t there be some action from the government? … Why has the government done nothing till now? … It is obligatory for the State to act on this. Silence is not an option.”
The High Court also emphasised that the “bias and discrimination” against women must change.
The High Court questioned Kerala government and said, “What are you doing to address the problems faced by women in society? Not just the film industry. The situation is bad and that too in a state like ours. We have a higher population of women in our state. This is not a minority issue for us… The SIT must look into all of this.”
Furthermore, the bench has asked the SIT to submit its status report on the next date. It added that it will then decide whether to open the sealed cover containing the un-redacted version of the report or not.
The court pointed out that the Hema Committee report also mentioned instances of exploitation even before the production of a film started which doesn’t come under the ambit of the Prevention of Sexual Harassment at Workplace (POSH) Act. Consequently, the court asked the Kerala government to formulate legislation to address these problems of women.
It added, “In such situations, it may not be possible to invoke the POSH Act. If issues are not being addressed with existing legislation, the government must think of new laws.”
It also suggested arbitration and mediation proceedings for non-criminal offences. The bench remarked, “Some cases can be brought under mediation. We are not talking about criminal offences. For example, issues faced by make-up artists like if there is gender discrimination.”
The court asked the SIT not to reveal key findings of the investigation in press conferences or to the media which could lead to a “media trial”. However, the court refrained from passing a gag order on the media. But, it asked the media not to put pressure on the SIT to act in haste.
Justice Sudha said, “No press conferences from the SIT. No media trial in this case. We are not saying the investigating officers shouldn’t talk to the press but that they shouldn’t reveal any details.”
Justice Nambiar noted, “We don’t think there is any necessity to issue any gag order to the media. The media can be responsible. No gag order for the media now … It is not just courts who have to protect fundamental rights. The State also has a duty. Even the media has a duty to respect the right to privacy of individuals.”
Justice Hema Committee report
The Kerala government established the Justice Hema Committee in February 2017 after a heinous case of sexual assault of an actress came to light. Notably, a prominent Malayalam actress was kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and filmed in a moving car. The Investigations revealed that actor Dileep had allegedly orchestrated the attack to “teach her a lesson.”
Following massive furore, the Justice Hema Committee came into being and it submitted its report to the Kerala government on 31st December 2019.
However, the findings of the report were made public on Monday (19th August 2024), five years after it was submitted to the Kerala government as it was claimed that it had a lot of sensitive information which needed to be redacted before releasing it to the public. They believed that publishing the full report would harm the industry.
The 63 pages that were redacted had portions that could infringe on the privacy of the individuals mentioned in it, as directed by the State Information Commission (SIC). However, the state government is facing widespread allegations that it is trying to protect the accused and excluded more information than what was recommended.
Now the court has come down heavily on the state government highlighting the five-year delay and the LDF government’s inaction in taking prompt action in the last five years.
