Madras HC grants Kamal Haasan interim stay on personal appearance

Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], May 4 (ANI): The Madurai Branch of the Madras High Court on Thursday granted an interim stay on the personal appearance of actor Kamal Haasan in connection with a case against him for allegedly hurting Hindu religious sentiments. Haasan had, a day before, filed a petition in the Madurai Bench seeking exemption from a personal appearance before the Judicial Magistrate Court in Valliyoor. In his petition, the actor said he was only replying to a question asked by the interviewer regarding oppression of women and increasing sexual assaults on them, including the film actresses and that he did not mean to hurt any person or his religious feelings. Magistrate Senthil Kumar had on April 21 ordered the police to investigate the matter and file a report at the earliest on the petition filed by President of Anjugramam Traders Association Athinatha Sundaram. Haasan said the complaint against him had been filed with an oblique motive and he did not mean to offend any one. "Is there anything more disgusting than oppressing a woman. On one side, we boast that we are a developed society and on the other side, women are being dominated in the name of pride. It seems like we haven t moved on from the Game of Dice incident of Mahabharatham," he had said. Hassan was referring to Pandava brothers staking their wife Draupadi in a gamble with their cousins and arch enemies, the Kauravas in the Mahabharata. The Hindu Makkal Katchi had filed the case against him. (ANI)