Kerala Education Minister demands Rahul Mamkootathil's resignation as MLA amid allegations of obscene conduct

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], August 21 (ANI): After Congress MLA Rahul Mamkootathil resigned as Kerala Youth Congress president, Kerala Education Minister V Sivankutty has demanded his resignation from the MLA post as well amid allegations of obscene conduct. 

"If the accused is a public representative, he should resign from that position,” Sivankutty said while adding, “There is a controversial issue that has been discussed in the public sector in Kerala for the past two days.” 

“Serious allegations have been levelled against Mamkootathil, a public representative, which is a grave matter. If these women have any fear of revealing their names, they should not be afraid. The government will be with them by providing full support and protection. The government is committed to ensuring justice. I would also like to remind you of some legal matters in this matter,” the Kerala Education Minister said. 

“Even if the complainants find it difficult to reveal their names, they can file a complaint with the police. The police will register a case and start an investigation. The privacy of the victims will be fully protected. A woman has revealed that she has informed the top leaders of the party,” he added. 

Sivankutty said that the top leaders of the party, who have been informed about the incident, have an obligation to report the crime to the police, as per the law.  

“Those leaders have some legal responsibilities. According to the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), if any person comes to know about a crime, they are obliged to report it to the police. Not reporting serious crimes to the police is a violation of the law. The government will take fair action in this matter. All assistance will be provided to women to file complaints. The law guarantees that it will take its course,” he added. 

Suggesting that more revelations have come to light, Sivankutty said that the public representative in question must answer to society and his voters instead of merely resigning from his organisation. 

“More serious revelations have come to the news channels. If the accused is a public representative, this problem will not be solved by resigning from organisational positions alone. The person has to answer to society rather than the organisation. Voters are the power in a democracy,” the Kerala Education Minister said. 

Sivankutty further reiterated that Mamkootathil resigns from his MLA post and issues an apology. 

“Since the allegations have been made, if this person is a public representative, he should apologise and resign from his position.  Otherwise, the general public, especially women, will never forgive. I congratulate the sisters who showed courage,” he said. 

The allegations of “obscene conduct” by Mamkootathil, who is an MLA from the Palakkad assembly constituency, have been levelled by writer Honey Bhaskaran and model Rini Ann George.

Honey Bhaskaran alleged in a Facebook post that Rahul messaged her on her social media account. She said initially it was about travel, and she responded to it, but there was a series of messages from him. When she realised he had no intention of stopping, she stopped responding to his messages. She said that she got to know through Youth Congress workers that he had badmouthed her, and that she had initiated the conversation.

These charges came shortly after Actress and model Rini Ann George accused the Congress MLA of sending her offensive messages on multiple occasions and inviting her to a hotel. George stated that when she threatened to inform his party, the leader challenged her to do so. She did not disclose the leader's name or party.

George claimed she had told the party leadership about the incident, alleging that wives and daughters of several politicians had faced similar experiences with the leader.

She questioned, "I want to ask which woman these politicians who were unable to protect the women in their families will protect?"

She further alleged that despite her complaint, the leader continued to receive opportunities within the party. George said she decided to speak out after seeing similar allegations by other women on social media, many of whom remained silent.

"I decided to speak as I saw recently on social media that many women have faced similar issues. None of these women are speaking a word about it. So I thought of speaking for all," she added.

Earlier on Wednesday, following the allegations, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staged a protest march to the office of Palakkad MLA Rahul Mamkoottathil, demanding his resignation. (ANI)