In a big relief to Malayalam actor Siddique, the Supreme Court on September 30 granted him an interim protection from arrest in a rape case registered against him based on allegations by a Malayalam actress. The bench had later extended the interim protection on subsequent hearings. Today the top court granted him pre-arrest bail.

The Supreme Court has granted Malayalam actor Siddique anticipatory bail in a rape case that emerged amid a spate of sexual assault charges by former actresses in the southern film industry.

Veteran Malayalam actor Siddique received anticipatory bail from the Supreme Court amidst a rape case. Despite the complaint being lodged eight years post-incident, accusations surfaced on social media in 2018.

Siddique, who was booked for offences under Sections 376 (rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), had claimed in his plea that complainant woman had subjected him to a "prolonged campaign of harassment and false accusations since 2019.

The charges against actor Siddique came as a spate of sexual misconduct allegations rocked the Malayalam film industry earlier this year. During the hearing, the Supreme Court asked the complainant why it took eight years to lodge the complaint.

The top court also took note of the fact that the complaint in the case was filed in August, eight years after the alleged incident took place in 2016.

Supreme Court orders bail for actor Siddique in sexual abuse case, citing delayed complaint and lack of evidence.

In its decision, the Supreme Court bench highlighted the eight-year delay in filing the First Information Report (FIR) as a key reason for granting bail.