Director Liju Krishna Accused Of Rape, Arrested

Debutant Malayalam director Liju Krishna has been arrested for allegedly raping a young woman on the pretext of marriage. According to reports, he was arrested on Sunday (March 6) from the shooting location of his upcoming film Padavettu starring Nivin Pauly and Manju Warrier in the lead roles. The shooting was reportedly underway in Kerala's Kannur. He was produced before the magistrate after bringing him to Kochi.

Shedding light on the case, a police official told NDTV that the complainant is not a part of the film industry. He was quoted as saying, "Liju Krishna has been arrested under section 376 IPC. We cannot give out any details of the complainant, but she isn't from the film industry as such. Instead, (she) is someone well known to him."

Soon after Krishna's arrest, FEFKA (Film Employees Federation of Kerala) revoked his membership. WCC (Women in Cinema Collective) members, on the other hand, sought his suspension from all film bodies.

As of now, the shoot of Padavettu, one of Nivin's highly anticipated films, has been halted owing to the same reason and the makers are yet to respond to the ongoing case and allegations against the director. Shine Tom Chacko, Aditi Balan and Shammy Thilakan are also a part of the film which marks the production debut of celebrated actor Sunny Wayne.

For women in distress or facing harassment, help available in India at the following helpline numbers: Central Social Welfare Board - Police Helpline: 1091/ 1291, (011) 23317004; Shakti Shalini- women's shelter: (011) 24373736/ 24373737; All India Women's Conference: 10921/ (011) 23389680; Joint Women's Programme: (011) 24619821; Sakshi- violence intervention center: (0124) 2562336/ 5018873; Nirmal Niketan (011) 27859158; JAGORI (011) 26692700; Nari Raksha Samiti: (011) 23973949; RAHI Recovering and Healing from Incest. A support centre for women survivors of child sexual abuse: (011) 26238466/ 26224042, 26227647.