Tini Tom gets anticipatory bail in Ansiba complaint over alleged 'jihadi' remarks

Kochi: Actor Tini Tom has been granted anticipatory bail in the case registered against him following a complaint filed by actress Ansiba. The Ernakulam Principal Sessions Court granted the relief in the case registered by the Kadavanthra Police.

The court had earlier directed the police to register an FIR based on Ansiba's complaint after rejecting the police's earlier report recommending against registration of a case. Tini Tom has been booked on charges including outraging the modesty of a woman and promoting communal defamation.

According to the FIR, Tini Tom allegedly attempted to portray Ansiba as a "jihadi" and a religious extremist. It also alleges that he made explicit and sexually suggestive remarks about her in public. The court ordered an investigation after observing that the police had wrongly treated the alleged "jihadi" remark as a joke.

The complaint stems from an incident during rehearsals for the AMMA family meeting at the Regional Sports Centre in Kadavanthra on 13 February. According to the FIR, Tini Tom allegedly spoke to Ansiba in an obscene manner, used sexually suggestive language, and referred to her as a "jihadi" and a religious extremist. It further alleges that he repeated these remarks to other members of the actors' association, causing damage to her reputation, hurting her religious identity, and subjecting her to mental distress.

The statement of actress and former AMMA executive committee member Neena Kurup was a key piece of evidence before the court. In her statement to the police, Kurup alleged that Tini Tom had made defamatory remarks about Ansiba at the AMMA office. She also stated that actress Shwetha Menon had informed her about the alleged remarks.

In her complaint, Ansiba alleged that Tini Tom had labelled her a "jihadi" and accused her of religious conversion, thereby defaming her personally.

Following a preliminary enquiry, the Kadavanthra Police recorded the statements of both Ansiba and Tini Tom. The police later submitted a report to the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), stating that a case could not be registered as the complaint was based largely on hearsay and that there was insufficient evidence to initiate legal proceedings.

However, the court found that a prima facie offence was made out. It also observed that although the alleged incident did not fall within the territorial jurisdiction of the Kadavanthra Police Station, the police should have registered the FIR and transferred it to the appropriate police station instead of declining to act. Acting on the court's directions, the police subsequently registered the case against Tini Tom.