Justice Hema Committee "much needed" to break abuse: Khushbu
Chennai (PTI): Actor-politician Khushbu Sundar on Wednesday said the Kerala government-appointed Justice K Hema Committee was "much needed" to break the abuse faced by female professionals in Malayalam cinema and urged women not to compromise and the men to speak up for victims of sexual harassment.
The "MeToo" moment prevailing in "our industry breaks you," the senior actor said in a post on 'X.'
"Kudos to the women who have stood their ground and emerged victorious. The #HemaCommittee was much needed to break the abuse. But will it?," the BJP leader added.
The Justice Hema Committee was constituted by the Kerala government after the 2017 actress assault case and its report revealed instances of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam cinema industry. It has revealed exploitation and abuse of women, leading to many women actors coming out with allegations of harassment at the hands of their male counterparts and other men in the cinema industry.
"Abuse, asking for sexual favours, and expecting women to compromise to gain a foothold or accelerate their careers exist in every field. Why is a woman alone expected to go through the grind? Although men too face it, it's marginally women who bear the brunt," Sundar said.
The fear of being shamed, victim blaming, and questions like "why did you do it" or "What made you do it" break the woman.
"The victim might be a stranger to you or me, but she needs our support, an ear to listen, and emotional backing from us all. When questioning why she didn’t come out earlier, we need to consider her circumstances – not everyone is privileged to speak out," she said.
"To all the men out there, I implore you to stand by the victim and show your unwavering support," she added.
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UP: Over 100 monkeys die of toxic chemical, buried in pit to hide carnage
Hathras (UP), Nov 22: More than 100 monkeys perished after inhaling a pesticide sprayed in a food godown and were stealthily buried in a pit, police on Friday said.
The bodies were taken out for a postmortem by a team of veterinarians on Friday.
Circle Officer Yogendra Krishna Narayan said police came to know about the deaths on Wednesday.
Police have registered a case against the employees of Food Corporation of India and started an investigation.
According to police, the chemical in question was aluminium phosphide sprayed on wheat sacks to protect it from insects and rodents in an FCI warehouse on November 7.
A troop of monkeys entered the warehouse through a broken window of the godown on the night of November 7 and ended up inhaling the gas.
When the workers opened the warehouse on November 9, they saw several monkeys dead.
They allegedly chose not to inform their seniors about deaths and buried the bodies in a pit.
The CO said the bodies were exhumed when some Vishv Hindu Parishad leaders came to know about the incident.
As per police count, more than 100 monkeys were exhumed from the pit.
Their bodies were in late stage decay, the officer said.
