Today, On 5th September, The Kerala High Court decided to form a five-judge special bench to hear cases concerning the Justice Hema Committee report, which highlights harassment and exploitation in the Malayalam film industry. This follows a plea challenging the report’s release. In response, the state government has announced a special investigation team to probe the allegations raised in the report.
Kochi: The Kerala High Court, On Thursday, announced its plan to form a five-judge special bench to handle cases concerning the Justice Hema Committee report.
During a hearing on a petition challenging a single judge’s decision to release the report, the bench, consisting of Acting Chief Justice A Muhamed Mustaque and Justice S Manu, made this observation.
According to a lawyer involved in the case, the special bench will include women judges. On August 13, the single judge had dismissed a petition against the State Information Commission’s order, which allowed the report’s findings and recommendations to be made public.
The single judge’s order issued in response to a plea by film producer Sajimon Parayil, who contested the State Information Commission’s directive from July 5.
The commission instructed the State Public Information Officer (SPIO) to release the report’s information responsibly, ensuring the privacy of individuals was protected. Parayil later appealed the decision to a division bench led by Acting Chief Justice, which, on Thursday, decided to create a special bench to address matters related to the report.
The Kerala government formed the committee in the aftermath of the 2017 actress assault case, and its findings exposed instances of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam film industry. After several allegations of sexual harassment and exploitation emerged against prominent actors and directors following the report’s release, the state government announced on August 25 that a seven-member special investigation team would be formed to investigate the claims.
Prominent figures mentioned in the report include actor Siddique, former general secretary of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artists (AMMA), director Ranjith, actors Jayasurya and Nivin Pauly, and actor-politician CPI(M) MLA Mukesh.
After the report’s release, Siddique resigned from his role as AMMA’s general secretary, and shortly thereafter, the organisation’s entire executive committee dissolved, with president Mohanlal also stepping down.
The Hema Committee established by the Kerala government in the wake of the 2017 actress assault case. Although the committee submitted its findings in 2019, the report remained undisclosed to the public, and the government took no immediate action.
On July 6, the State Information Commission (SIC) ordered the Pinarayi Vijayan government to release the report to RTI applicants. The Kerala High Court later upheld this decision on August 13, leading to the report being made public.