NEW DELHI: A case has been registered against Malayalam film director Ranjith Balakrishnan on a sexual assault complaint filed by a 31-year-old man. In the complaint, the man has alleged that he was sexually assaulted by director Balakrishnan at a five-star hotel in Bengaluru, news agency PTI reported.
According to the FIR, the 31-year-old said he was introduced to Balakrishnan in 2012 in Kozhikode. The man reportedly had gone there to meet actor Mammootty during the shoot of ‘Bavuttiyude Namathil’ which was written and being produced by Balakrishnan.
The man claimed that the director managed to get his number and invited him to the hotel near Kempegowda International Airport in December 2012. In the hotel, he was offered alcohol and sexually assaulted by the director.
“The complaint was initially filed at a police station in Kerala but the case was transferred to Bengaluru because the alleged incident of sexual assault occurred at a five-star hotel here and an FIR has now been registered,” a senior police official told PTI.
“The incident allegedly took place in 2012 but the complainant came out now in the wake of a series of sexual harassment allegations by many artists in the Malayalam film industry which he claimed gave him the courage to register his complaint,” the official said.
Based on the complaint, a case was registered on October 26 at Bangalore International Airport Limited police station under section 377 (unnatural offences) and 66 E (violation of privacy) of Information Technology Act against the director.
Earlier, Bengali actress Sreelekha Mitra had also accused Balakrishnan of misconduct, claiming inappropriate behavior during a script discussion at his home. Though, the Balakrishnan refuted the claims, he stepped down from the position of Kerala State Chalachitra Academy chairman following allegations.