Kerala Govt to fast-track appeal against trial court acquittal in actress sexual assault case

The Kerala government will soon complete the process of filing an appeal in the High Court against the trial court’s recent verdict in the 2017 actress sexual assault case, specifically challenging the acquittal of actor Dileep (the eighth accused) and three others.

Government sources have confirmed that legal procedures are being expedited to file the appeal before the High Court against the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court’s verdict. The government has decided to complete the process quickly and file the appeal when the court reopens after the Christmas holidays.

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The appeal will be filed after receiving a certified copy of the trial court judgment, and other necessary procedures will be completed within that time. The plan is to approach the Division Bench of the High Court. The prosecution believes that the verdict contains several flaws, particularly in the court’s evaluation of the evidence presented.

The government is specifically challenging the acquittal of actor Dileep, Charley Thomas, Sanilkumar (Mesthiri Sanil), and Sarath G. Nair, and intends to question the trial court’s dismissal of the conspiracy charges.

The prosecution and the probe team that investigated the 2017 case have expressed confidence that all the accused, including actor Dileep, who was acquitted, will be convicted in the higher courts once the appeals are heard.

They maintain that the evidence against Dileep is strong and that the verdict can be overturned. The investigation team has reiterated that the probe was conducted with utmost sincerity and that they remain fully confident that the evidence presented will lead to convictions during the appeal process.

On December 8, the Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court acquitted actor Dileep and four others of all criminal charges in the case. Sessions Judge Honey M Varghese acquitted Dileep (P Gopalakrishnan), holding that the prosecution failed to prove the conspiracy charges against him.

However, the court found six others who directly committed the crime guilty. Those convicted include Sunil NS, alias Pulsar Suni, 37, the prime accused; Martin Antony, 33, a studio driver; B. Manikandan, 37, also a driver; Vijeesh V.P., 38, an electrician; and Salim H., 30, and Pradeep, 31, both bus crew members.

Along with Dileep, the court also acquitted Charlie Thomas, Sanil Kumar alias Mestri Sanil, and Sarath Nair. Charlie was accused of providing a hideout for the other accused after the incident. Sanil faced charges of conspiring with Pulsar Suni in jail to extort money by threatening Dileep. Sarath was accused of handing over and destroying the visuals of the assault. Three other accused — Vishnu, Vipinlal, and Aneesh — had turned approvers.

On Friday, the court sentenced Sunil N.S. alias Pulsar Suni, the main accused, and five others — Martin Antony, B. Manikandan, Vijeesh V.P., Salim H., and Pradeep — to twenty years of rigorous imprisonment.