Kochi: Malayalam film actor Siddique, accused of raping a female artist eight years ago, is expected to appear before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on Monday after the Supreme Court granted him interim protection from arrest. The actor had gone incommunicado since the Kerala High Court rejected his anticipatory bail plea last week. The State Police issued a lookout circular against him following this.
A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma issued notices to the Kerala government and the victim during a hearing on Siddique's challenge to the High Court's decision.
On September 24, the Kerala High Court denied Siddique's anticipatory bail in the rape case, stating that due to the seriousness of the allegations, his custodial interrogation was necessary for a proper investigation.
Siddique, who has been charged under Sections 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), has claimed in his plea that the complainant has subjected him to a "prolonged campaign of harassment and false accusations since 2019."
The case comes amid multiple FIRs filed against prominent Malayalam film industry figures, following allegations of sexual harassment brought to light in the Justice K Hema Committee report.
