Malayalam actor Jayasurya, who was accused of sexual harassment by actress Minu Muneer, finally reacted to the allegations and issued an official statement on his birthday. On August 31, Saturday, the actor shared a note on Facebook, stating that the accusations were untrue and that he was shattered by them.
Thanking his fans who have been supporting him, Jayasurya announced that he will be taking the legal route to get his name cleared of all the allegations. "Due to my personal commitments, my family and I have been in America for the past month and during this time, two false allegations on the grounds of sexual harassment were made against me. Quite naturally, it has shattered me, my family and everyone who has held me close," he wrote.
He went on to say, "I have decided to move forward with this legally. My legal team will be looking after the rest of the proceedings regarding this case. False allegations are easy to make for anyone who lacks conscience. I only hope one realises that facing a false accusation of harassment is just as painful as the harassment itself. A lie always travels faster than the truth but I believe truth will prevail."
"Thank you to those who contributed to making this birthday the most painful one. Let those who have not sinned throw stones, but only at those who have sinned," he added.
For those unversed, actress Minu Muneer accused Jayasurya and five others of sexually harassing and abusing her on the sets of one of their films. She claimed that the incident made it difficult for her to get work in Mollywood, and she eventually had to quit the Malayalam film industry and move to Chennai.
Another woman too accused Jayasurya of outraging her modesty on the sets of a film.
Two FIRs have been filed against the actor under Section 354 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and an investigation into the claims of the actresses is underway.
