Malayalam Film Director Liju Krishna Arrested On Rape Charges

Who is Liju Krishna: The director of the upcoming Malayalam film Padavettu was reportedly arrested over the weekend in Kerala, on charges of rape. Liju Krishna hails from Kannur and was in his hometown, shooting, when police took him in Sunday.

According to reports, police have confirmed the complainant is not from the film industry but is someone Krishna personally knows. The rape complaint against the 36-year-old was filed at Kakkanad. Krishna is expected to be brought before a court on Monday.

Padavettu is Krishna's debut directorial and stars Aditi Balan, Nivin Pauly and Manju Warrier among others. It was scheduled to release later this year. Following Krishna's arrest, shooting for the film has reportedly come to a halt.

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According to India Today, the woman complainant has alleged that Krishna sexually assaulted her multiple times between 2020 and 2021. The duo was living together and Krishna had allegedly promised to marry her. Certain reports suggest she also helped Krishna on parts of the film.

Krishna was arrested under section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which relates to rape.

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Krishna's arrest coincides with that of a famous tattoo artist in Kerala who was accused of rape by multiple women. As per reports, Sujeesh, who runs Inkfected Tattoo Studio in Kochi, sexually assaulted his clients, as alleged in complaints. At least six cases have been filed against him, with the events coming to light after an 18-year-old woman's post accusing him of rape went viral on social media.

As per the woman's post, Sujeesh allegedly raped her while tattooing her. The accused was initially absconding, police said, and surrendered when he was cornered. He was also arrested on Sunday.

"It's not a one-off complaint. We are getting a lot of complaints... All complaints are against this one particular person," a top police official was quoted saying by NDTV.