The unseemly haste with which the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA) has sought to reinstate actor Dileep, an accused in a sexual assault case, deserves condemnation (“Assault survivor, 3 actors quit AMMA”, June 28). The stars who made a big spectacle of protesting against the sexual assault of the actress are now sadly silent. The trial is yet to reach its conclusion but the ‘innocent until proven guilty’ argument that has been doing the rounds is irrelevant as the crime is of a serious nature. What was the hurry to reinstate the actor? This case shows how many patriarchal barriers exist for women to surmount even after they have gathered the courage to complain of sexual assault.
V.N. Mukundarajan,
Thiruvananthapuram
The reinstatement of Dileep is not just injustice to the woman in the case but to all the actresses in the Malayalam film industry. This should be enough reason for all those in AMMA to quit the association.
Vazathur Ragahavan,
Bengaluru