Dileep sexual assault case: Kerala HC stays Hema commission report release

The Kerala High Court on Wednesday stayed the release of the Justice Hema commission report for a week following a petition against its disclosure, citing privacy concerns. The court requested the state government and the Right to Information Commission to provide their responses before implementing the one-week stay on the release. The petition will be reviewed on 1 August.

The Kerala government was scheduled to release the findings of the report today, 24 July.

The Justice K. Hema commission was established in 2017 to study and suggest solutions for issues faced by women in the Malayalam film industry. The committee was constituted in the aftermath of the 2017 actress assault case involving actor Dileep (born Gopalakrishnan Padmanabhan), to study incidents of sexual harassment and gender inequality in the industry.

The interim order was passed by justice P.M. Manoj on a plea by film producer Sajimon Parayil, who filed a petition in the high court opposing the publication of the report. The petitioner contended that releasing the report would compromise the privacy of individuals in the industry and could endanger those who provided information.

In response, the state government and the RTI Commission asserted that the report set for publication did not contain any information that could identify individuals. Additionally, the commission clarified that the petitioner was not among the individuals interviewed by the Hema commission.

According to a directive from the RTI commission, sections that could compromise individuals' privacy or potentially identify them were not to be made public. The 233-page report was to be provided to five individuals who had filed appeals and complaints to the commission seeking access to the report, which was published five years ago.

State RTI commissioner Dr A. Abdul Hakeem had instructed that the applicants be informed about which parts of the report would be released and which would not. Consequently, the RTI officer of the culture department notified them that 82 pages, 115 paragraphs, and certain lines on various pages had been omitted. Each of the five individuals had paid Rs 699 to the treasury for a copy of the report.

The Hema commission also included actor Sharada and former IAS officer K.B. Vatsala Kumari. Despite the commission submitting its report on 31 December 2019, the Kerala government withheld its release, citing concerns over potentially sensitive information contained in it.

Journalists have subsequently filed complaints with the RTI commission regarding the delay. During this time, the Hema commission collected further testimonies from various women in the industry.

In a letter to the secretary of cultural affairs on 19 July 2020, Justice Hema asked to keep the report confidential as women disclosed various incidents of assault during in-camera proceedings. She added that the report was not to be parted with in a routine manner.

An actress was reportedly abducted and molested in her car for two hours on the night of 17 February, 2017. The perpetrators forcibly entered her vehicle and later fled from a crowded area after filming the entire incident to blackmail her. The case involves 10 accused, including actor Dileep, who was arrested as the eighth accused and subsequently released on bail after a court order. Legal proceedings in the case are ongoing.