Apex Court Extends Interim Protection From Arrest Granted To Malayalam Actor Siddique In Alleged Rape Case

The Supreme Court has extended the interim protection from arrest being granted to Malayalam Actor Siddique in an alleged rape case.

The Court extended its interim Order passed in September 30, 2024 by which it granted him interim protection from arrest and directed him to cooperate in the investigation.

The two-Judge Bench comprising Justice Bela M. Trivedi and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma passed the Order after Senior Counsel said that Siddique had a bad throat and sought some time to argue the case.

Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi appeared on behalf of Siddique while Senior Advocate Ranjit Kumar appeared on behalf of the Kerala Police.

It was claimed by the Senior Counsel for the actor that the investigating agency is repeatedly asking Siddique about his phone and laptop which he had in 2016 but does not have it now. It was further submitted that he met the complainant only once and the investigating agency is also seeking his passport and Aadhaar number.

On the other hand, the Senior Counsel for the Kerala Police contended that, Siddique has been appearing before it but is not cooperating in the investigation and giving evasive responses. On October 22, 2024, the Court had extended the interim protection from arrest for two weeks.

The Bench had allowed the actor to file his rejoinder affidavit to the status report filed by Kerala Police, which alleged a lack of cooperation in the investigation on his part. Earlier, Siddique sought time to file a rejoinder affidavit to the status report filed by Kerala Police and claimed that he has been cooperating with the police investigation.

It was alleged by the Kerala Police in its status report that Siddique was hindering the investigation and also destroyed electronic devices apart from deleting social media accounts.

With PTI Inputs