"If survivor feels she didn't get full justice, govt should appeal": Congress' Muraleedharan on Dileep's acquittal in Kerala actor assault case

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], December 9 (ANI): Reacting to actor Dileep's acquittal in the 2017 actress assault case, senior Congress leader K Muraleedharan on Tuesday said that the government must step in if the survivor believes justice has not been fully served.
Speaking to ANI, Muraleedharan said, "That's the judgment of the court. If the woman feels she did not receive full justice, then, on her behalf, the government may file an appeal. The government should do that. I hope that the government will do that."
His remarks come a day after a trial court in Kerala acquitted the prominent Malayalam actor and the 8th accused, Dileep, in the 2017 case. As per the judgment, Dileep has been found not guilty of the allegation that he orchestrated the assault.
Malayalam actor Dileep was accused of conspiring and hiring a gang to execute the crime. The case pertained to an actress who worked in Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu films and was allegedly abducted and molested inside her car by a group of men who forced their way into the vehicle on the night of February 17, 2017.
While the actor expressed profound gratitude to his family, supporters and legal team upon acquittal, the Kerala Government has decided to appeal against the judgment. The Kerala Law Minister, P Rajeev, said that he has discussed the appeal matter with the state Chief Minister, Pinarayi Vijayan and extended support to the actress.
"The state government's decision is to appeal against the trial court verdict in the actress's attack case. Respected. Discussed this matter with the Chief Minister. The government is with the survival," said P Rajeev on Facebook.
Meanwhile, Dileep's advocate B Raman Pillai on Monday termed the evidence against his client "bogus," calling the case a "conspiracy" against the actor.
Speaking to ANI, Pillai said the court acquitted Dileep because the defence proved that the evidence in the case was "fabricated."
He said, "We could establish that the evidence produced is bogus and fabricated. It is a conspiracy against Dileep. For that, they have created some evidence. But they couldn't establish any of that evidence before the court. Dileep was acquitted because it is just a decision on the basis of evidence that could be the only view."
"I could not see the judgment, so I do not know the reasons. But on the basis of the evidence, I can say this is the only view, because we can establish that the evidence produced against him is bogus and fabricated. Actually, it is a conspiracy against Dileep to implicate him as an accused. For that, they have created some evidence," the lawyer added. (ANI)