Malayalam actor Nivin Pauly calls rape allegations 'baseless'

Actor Nivin Pauly was on Tuesday booked for the offence of rape on a complaint by a 40yearold woman that he sexually assaulted her over a year ago in Dubai an allegation he denied and vowed to take all possible legal measures to prove his innocenceAn officer of Oonnukal police station where the FIR under section 376 of the IPC was registered said that there are six accused including a woman in the caseThe first accused is a woman and Pauly is the sixth accused the officer saidAccording to the woman the incident occurred over a year ago in Dubai the officer said and declined to give further detailsHours after the FIR was registered Pauly in a Facebook post said that the allegations were entirely untrueIm determined to go to any extent to prove these allegations are baseless and will take all necessary steps to bring those responsible to light Thank you for your concern The rest will be handled legally he saidSubsequently he held a press conference where he reiterated that the allegations against him were false and added this is a deliberate allegation and I believe there is a conspiracy behind itHe further said that he did not know the complainant and had never seen or spoken to herThe actor said that around oneandahalf months ago an officer of Oonnukal police station had called him over the phone and told him that they have received a sexual assault complaint against him from a womanWhen I denied knowledge about the allegations the officer said they were convinced that the complaint was false and they were going to close it he saidThe actor further said that the officer and his lawyer advised him not to file a case against the complainant as some persons make such complaints merely for publicity So I did not pursue that then he saidPauly said he will take all possible legal measures to prove his innocence and will fight it to the very end as he believes that we need to put a stop to such fake allegationsSo I will fight it not just for me but for others who might face such fake allegations in the future he saidThe actor also said that he would file a case against the complainant for trying to defame him and the complaint was being preparedHe further said that he will cooperate with the investigation and requested the media to ascertain the facts or truth behind the allegations before publicising themSuch allegations affect our close family Thankfully my familys support is with me he saidPauly is among the many actors and directors who are facing allegations of sexual harassment or rape by female actors following the publication of the Justice K Hema Committee reportThe committee was constituted by the Kerala government after the 2017 actress assault case and its report revealing instances of harassment and exploitation of women in the Malayalam cinema industryFollowing the allegations of sexual harassment and exploitation cropping up against several actors and directors the state government on August 25 announced the establishment of a sevenmember special investigation team to probe them