The Kerala High Court on Friday (June 12) has directed the District and Sessions Judge, Ernakulam to transmit the memory card and pendrive containing the visuals of the assault in the 2017 Actress Assault Case in a sealed cover to the Registrar General of the High Court.

The court further directed the Registrar General to keep the memory card in "safe custody" till further order

Justice C.S. Dias passed an interim order while considering the plea filed by the survivor in the 2017 Actress Assault Case seeking a fresh and comprehensive probe by SIT into the alleged illegal access of the memory card that contained visuals of the assault.

The Court has directed the Registrar General to keep the memory card and pen drive in safe custody until further orders are passed in the case. It has also granted a month's time to the respondents in the case to file counters, if any.

"On a consideration of the facts and materials and learned senior counsel appearing for the petitioner, and the public prosecutor, I am satisfied that the petitioner has made out a prima facie case for an interim order. Hence, I direct the District and Sessions judge, Ernakulam to forth transmit the memory card and pendrive in the enquiry reports in a sealed cover to the Registrar General of this Court. The Registrar General shall keep the said Exhibits [MOs] in safe custody until further orders are passed," the Court ordered.

When the matter came up for consideration today, Advocate Vrinda Grover, appearing for the survivor, contended that she is challenging the inquiry report since the parameters of the inquiry as ordered by the Court was not fulfilled. She argued that there was a specific direction by the Court to take assistance of forensic expert but that was not done.

Earlier, Justice Jobin Sebastian and Dr. Justice Kauser Edappagath had recused from hearing the plea.

In the plea, the petitioner has sought for a direction to constitute a Special Investigation Team with at-least one member with expertise in cyber / digital forensic and to conduct a time bound, effective, fair and comprehensive inquiry or investigation into the unauthorized and illegal access made to the memory card.

The FSL that examined the memory card had found that the hash value of the same had changed and that the eight videos that contained the assault were last accessed on 13.12.2018.

"That it is noteworthy that while no court order sheet records de-sealing and access to the memory card on 13.12.2018, the Ld. Trial Court, [which is also the Inquiry Authority of the impugned reports] took no steps to inquire into the same," states the plea.

Notably, last year the trial court had acquitted actor Dileep an accused in the case, while finding six others guilty.

The case refers to the abduction and sexual assault of an actress in a moving vehicle in the outskirts of Cochin city that occurred on February 17, 2017. The accused persons had also taken videos of the assault and copied into a memory card, which was produced before the Magistrate Court, Aluva by one of the accused, who was later discharged.

The petition is moved by Advocates Bhadra Kumari K.V., Vrinda Grover, Rhuthunanda S. B., Arunima.T.S., Byja E.G.

Case No: WP(Crl.) 871/2026

Case Title: XXX v. State of Kerala and Ors.