Hema Committee report: SIT to meet today after getting unedited portions

Kochi: With the Onam festivities and the series of holidays over, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to probe the Hema Committee report, which brought out the pitiable condition of women in the Malayalam film industry, will be meeting on Wednesday evening.

The SIT, a team of four woman IAS officers, has secured the unedited version of the Hema Committee report. The report was released on August 19 with several paragraphs censored.

As a matter of abundant caution, the probe team, which has been split into different teams, has been given the report in parts only, with no team getting the entire report, with a rider that there should be no photocopies taken.

The team has been given a few days to study the portions of the report in detail and come to a preliminary conclusion based on their inferences.

The SIT is also moving carefully as a special bench of the Kerala High Court is monitoring it. The Pinarayi Vijayan government was jolted when the court asked why it was sitting on the report after it was submitted on December 31, 2019.

The Malayalam film industry has been reeking after the Hema Committee report was published. A few former actresses revealed their bad experiences and the police were quick to act. By now the police have registered 11 FIRs against various film personalities after former actresses revealed to the media how they were exploited.

Presently those who are in the dock include actor-turned-CPI(M) legislator Mukesh Madhavan, Nivin Pauly, Siddique, Jayasurya, Edavela Babu, Maniyanpilla Raju, directors Ranjith and Prakash, and production executives Vichu and Noble.

Mukesh, Ranjith, Raju and a few others have already got relief from the courts from being arrested.

Meanwhile, the SIT is meeting for the first time after the Onam festivities. All eyes are on them and the actions they will be taking. The court has asked the SIT to take necessary action on the offences revealed in the report and if the victim or survivor is not interested in prosecuting the case, they can drop it.

The coming days are going to be crucial as the SIT will have to report back to the High Court early next month on the action taken after receiving the unedited version of the Hema Committee report.