Actor and politician M Mukesh.
Credit: Facebook/@mukeshcineactor
Thiruvananthapuram/Kochi: The Congress and BJP on Tuesday intensified their demand for actor-politician M Mukesh's resignation as MLA as he has been accused of sexual harassment, but the CPI(M) legislator termed the allegations the "same political drama that was enacted back in 2018".
Mukesh said that a proper and transparent investigation is necessary to reveal the truth behind the allegations, and claimed that a group has been trying to blackmail him for money and they are the ones making the allegations. He added that strong legal action would be taken against them.
Earlier, Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly V D Satheesan and BJP State President K Surendran said that Mukesh ought to resign from his position as MLA.
Satheesan said it was up to Mukesh and his party the CPI(M) to decide whether he should resign, and hoped they would take an appropriate decision.
"Several allegations have been levelled against Mukesh, and Kerala society is keenly watching how he and his party will respond," the opposition leader said.
He also said that if the government had taken action against the "real culprits", innocent persons in the film industry would not have been attacked.
Surendran accused the CPI(M) and the state government of protecting Mukesh.
"If director Ranjith and actor Sidhique can resign, then why not Mukesh?," he asked.
He also said that the actor's inclusion in the cinema policy making committee is a challenge to women and said that no conclave with the participation of Mukesh would be permitted in Kerala.
In a statement, the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) accused the state government of trying to protect certain persons by not taking any action based on the Justice Hema Committee report.
"Kerala society expected immediate intervention from the government on this report. But the government took a stand to protect the culprits," it said and criticised the inclusion of Mukesh in the conclave and the film policy making committee.
The KPCC further said that the government took the objectionable stand that a case would be filed only if a formal complaint is received despite instances of sexual violence and exploitation being revealed in the report.
Speaking along similar lines, Satheesan said that the government was trying to protect those named in the report and therefore, an investigation has to be carried out.
KPCC General Secretary M Liju said that the party will organise a statewide protest against the government's anti-women actions and for not filing of cases based on the committee report. It will also seek the resignation of state Culture Minister Saji Cherian and demand a probe into the role of Kerala Transport Minister K B Ganesh Kumar in connection with the sexual harassment allegations.
Mukesh, in his response, said that the woman who made the allegations against him had first approached him in 2009 seeking an opportunity to act in films.
"I gave the usual reply that I will try. She later sent me messages on WhatsApp praising my behaviour when she had met me personally," he claimed.
In 2022, the woman again contacted him over the phone and demanded huge financial assistance from him, Mukesh claimed. Later, a man claiming to be her husband had also demanded money from him over the phone, the CPI(M) MLA further said.
"The group which was trying to blackmail me for money has now turned against me when they got the opportunity," he contended.
He said that while he never tried to harm anyone's dignity or individuality, he will not succumb to blackmail tactics.
Meanwhile, Kerala police said that the cases registered on the basis of the recent allegations will be handed over to the special team constituted for investigating the accusations by women in the film industry.
The police, in a statement, also said that more women officers would be included in the special team.
The government had on August 25 announced the establishment of a seven-member special investigation team to probe the allegations made in the wake of the Hema Committee report being published, following which more complaints surfaced against various actors and directors.
The report by the Justice Hema Committee, constituted by the Kerala government after the 2017 actress assault case has revealed instances of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam cinema industry, prompting calls for action against the guilty.