Overview
- Ernakulam Principal Sessions Judge Honey M. Varghese is slated to pronounce the judgment around 11 a.m. on December 8 after trial proceedings that began in January 2020.
- Actor Dileep is charged with criminal conspiracy and destroying evidence alongside nine others facing counts including gang rape and offences under the IT Act, following his 2017 arrest and about three months in custody before bail.
- Police never found the phone allegedly used to record the assault, and a memory card kept in court custody was later found to have been accessed illegally, prompting Kerala High Court guidelines in December 2023 on handling sexually explicit digital evidence.
- The court heard testimony from roughly 260 witnesses and admitted hundreds of documents, while petitions by all sides, further investigation, COVID-19 interruptions, and prosecutor resignations contributed to years of delay.
- The case catalysed reforms and debate within Malayalam cinema, including the formation of the Women in Cinema Collective and the Justice Hema Committee, while some outlets have reported uncorroborated claims about a fake WhatsApp group and alleged payment trails.