Kerala court acquits actor Dileep in 2017 actress assault case, six found guilty
Kochi (PTI): A Kerala court on Monday acquitted Malayalam actor Dileep in a case relating to the sexual assault of a South Indian actress in Kochi in 2017.
The court, however, found six others, including prime accused Sunil N S alias Pulsar Suni, who directly committed the crime, guilty.
Apart from Dileep, the court also acquitted three other persons in the case.
The verdict was pronounced by Ernakulam Principal Sessions Judge Honey M Varghese, who had concluded the hearing in the lengthy trial on November 25.
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The assault on the actress, who has worked in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films, after her car was abducted for two hours, had shaken the conscience of Kerala society.
According to the prosecution, several persons forced their way into the vehicle on the night of February 17, 2017 and later escaped in a busy area.
The ten accused who faced trial are Sunil NS alias Pulsar Suni, Martin Antony, Manikandan B, Vijesh V P, Salim H, Pradeep, Charly Thomas, actor Dileep (real name P Gopalakrishnan), Sanil Kumar alias Mesthri Sanil, and Sharath.
Police arrested the accused soon after the incident and filed the first charge sheet against seven persons in April 2017.
During further investigation, Dileep was arrested on July 10, 2017 after the probe team found that the prime accused, Suni, had allegedly sent a letter to him from jail.
Dileep was granted bail on October 3, 2017.
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Action taken against 4,000 people for irregularities in Jal Jeevan Mission: Govt in Lok Sabha
New Delhi (PTI): Action has been taken against more than 4,000 people across India following complaints of irregularities in implementing the Jal Jeevan Mission, the Lok Sabha was informed on Thursday.
Union Jal Shakti Minister C R Patil, while responding to a supplementary question, said that based on complaints, teams were formed to investigate issues. The reports of the teams were also shared with states.
Primarily, the complaints were lodged for poor quality of work, financial irregularities and inadequate water supply, the minister said, adding that action has been taken against more than 4,000 people.
Patil said grants for works under the mission are released to state governments, who issue tenders, prepare project reports and share compliance with the ministry.
