'Sexual Harassment Of Women' In Malayalam Film Industry: Kerala HC Stays Release Of Report

Movie producer Sajimon Parayil moved Kerala HC seeking stay on release of Justice Hema Commission report which contains testimonies of sexual harassment faced by women in Malayali film industry

The interim stay of one week was granted by a bench of Justice PM Manoj of Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court on Wednesday ordered a stay on State Information Commissioner's direction to make public the report containing testimonies of sexual harassment faced by women in Malayali film industry. The report in question was prepared by a committee headed by Justice K. Hema. The committee was established in 2017 by the Kerela government headed by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to probe various issues faced by women in the film industry and suggest solution to the same.

The interim stay of one week was granted by a bench of Justice PM Manoj of Kerala High Court, the LiveLaw reported.

The primary issued dealt by the commissions concerned a probe into service conditions and remuneration for women in cinema and suggest measures to enhance participation of women in all fields connected to the industry. The commission was also tasked to explore how to bring more women into the technical side of cinema. It also pondered on ways to help women into the technical side of cinema when they have they have to step away from work due to delivery, child care or other health issues.

The commission that worked between 2017 to 2019 was constituted with an objective to ensure gender equality in the content of cinema.

Controversy Around Making Justice Hema Commission Report Public

The case came up in high court when a movie producer Sajimon Parayil challenged the order of the State Information Commissioner (SIC) to disclose the Hema Commission report. The SIC had ordered publishing of the report after redacting portions which affected the privacy of persons who gave testimonies.

Parayil's case is that the testimony was given under the promise of confidentiality and making the report public would affect the privacy of the person who gave testimonies to the commission. It was contended that even if some parts of the report are redacted, the film industry is so interconnected that even harmless details can lead to the identification of the person, which can lead to their harassment, the news report said.

The petitioner further argued that since, the report contains testimonies of sexual harassment it can harm those againt whome the allegations have been made, without giving them a fair chance to present their side of the story. It was contended in the high court that the Commission was not tasked with a fact-finding mission, but to come up with solutions. 

The Commission had said that it was in the larger public interest to make the report public.

The High Court has stayed the release of report for one week, till next date of hearing.