In the aftermath of the Justice Hema Committee report being released to the public, many allegations of sexual abuse and harassment has been levelled against the who’s who of Malayalam cinema. Prominent among them has been actress Minu Muneer alleging that actor and CPI (M) MLA Mukesh had misbehaved with her, and harassed her in lieu of accepting her application to join the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA). Responding to the accusation, Mukesh hit back with an accusation of his own saying he was being “blackmailed” by Minu. In a Facebook post, Mukesh wrote, “The truth needs to come out. I’ll face it legally, and I welcome investigations into the allegations against filmmakers, including myself.”
Minu, in an earlier interview, said that Mukesh had sought sexual favours when she asked for his assistance in joining AMMA. However, Mukesh argued that it was a political drama. “The same political drama happened in 2018, raising the same allegations,” said the actor, adding, “In 2009, she introduced herself as Minu Kurian, a cinema aspirant, and met me with a photo album of hers. As it is usual when someone asks for such opportunities, I said I’ll try my best. In fact, they later sent a message thanking me for my polite behaviour. At no point, during the meeting did she express dislike or flaws in my behaviour.”
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However, the actor alleges that in 2022, she approached him as Minu Muneer, and asked for a “huge financial help” but he expressed his helplessness. “She sent a WhatsApp message asking for at least Rs 1 lakh. I also received another message that people from a particular community had been asked to intervene since I didn’t pay the money,” shared Mukesh, further adding that a few days later he received another message from a person claiming to be her husband demanding a huge amount of money. “This gang has been constantly blackmailing me for money, and is now turning against me when they got this opportunity. I am revealing this on the basis of evidence regarding messages they sent me. I am not one to conspire to harm someone’s personality or dignity. But I am not ready to succumb to blackmail tactics either.”
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Such has been the repercussions of the Hema Committee Report that AMMA chief Mohanlal and the executive committee resigned from their posts.
Meanwhile, a seven-member Special Investigation Team was set up under the aegis of the Pinarayi Vijayan government in Kerala to probe all sexual assault charges.
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