KOCHI: The Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) has come up with a strong response to the recent court order granting anticipatory bail to the actor-producer Vijay Babu in connection with the case related to the rape of an actress.
"The hurdles that stand in the way of a survivor proving her truth are just as monstrous as the crime itself," said WCC in a statement extending support to the survivor.
The statement also strongly criticized Babu for trying to influence the complainant and publicly announcing her name on social media.
"The legal framework of our country provides every citizen the right to complain to the police when a crime is committed against them and in the case of sexual assault, it also provides the complainant with the right to privacy under Section 228A. But, reacting to a confidential police complaint lodged by the survivor against him, Babu travelled abroad and absconded from the law from April 24 to June 1 by evading arrest," the statement pointed out.
He publicly announced her name on social media, shaming and intimidating her, then deleted the video and allegedly tried to influence her to withdraw the complaint, the WCC statement said.
"In the past, there have been police cases filed against this accused by women closely associated with him. Now the accused has been granted bail. The aggressive pattern used by perpetrators to silence the voices of survivors needs to be recognized here. The National Crime Records Bureau reports that less than 28% of rape cases under IPC Section 376 have led to conviction. This pattern is the reason - the hurdles that stand in the way of a survivor proving her truth are just as monstrous as the crime itself," it said.
WCC reiterates our full support to the survivor and ensures her that we see her, believe her and stand by her, the statement concluded.
