A court on Saturday granted three-day police custody to Malayalam director Ranjith, who was arrested in connection with an alleged incident of sexual harassment during the shooting of a film.
Chief Judicial Magistrate of Ernakulam, Salmath RM, granted the petition filed by the police seeking Ranjith’s detention for three days, granting him till Monday evening.
Ranjith was produced in court from Ernakulam sub-jail, where he was detained for the past three days.
Read also | The government and police are with the victim; Ranjith will not be protected: Minister Saji Cherian
He also filed a bail application in the case, claiming his innocence.
Ranjith’s lawyer said the arrest was made without following due process and cited his health condition while seeking bail. The court said it would consider the bail request at a later date.
Ranjith was arrested on Tuesday night in Thodupuzha after an actress approached the police, alleging that he sexually harassed her inside a convoy during the shooting of a film in Fort Kochi.
Read also | Director Ranjith has been remanded in judicial custody in the sexual assault case
Meanwhile, lawyer S. Rajeev, who represents Ranjith, told reporters that the arrest violates the Supreme Court’s directions.
“The Supreme Court has specifically ordered that arrest can only be made for crimes requiring a sentence of more than seven years. Otherwise, notice must be issued to the accused, or sufficient reasons must be stated before the court,” he said.
Rajiv added that Ranjith was suffering from several health issues, which were also raised before the court when the police custody application was considered.
Read also | Kerala: Collector orders assistance to relatives of worker killed in oil unit fire, protest held
The bail application was submitted on April 7 and Ranjith will be produced again in court on April 6, he said.
He further noted that a situation had arisen where anyone could be arrested based on such allegations, warning that this was becoming a trend.
“If the arrests are made in this way, then why is the Supreme Court there? This is a blatant violation of the Supreme Court’s directions,” he said.
This story has been published from a news agency feed without modifications to the text.
