Bhavana reacts to Dileep's acquittal in Kerala actress assault case: 'Not every citizen in this country is treated equally before the law'

Dubai: Bhavana Menon, the survivor in the 2017 Kerala assault case, has broken her silence over actor Dileep's acquittal earlier this week by Ernakulam Sessions Court in Kerala.

"After years of pain, tears, and emotional struggle, I have come to a painful realisation, 'Not every citizen in this country is treated equally before the law'," said Bhavana in a long Instagram post. She also expressed her anguish at false stories being spread about the accused 1 being her personal driver.

Earlier this week, a court in Kerala acquitted actor Dileep and convicted six others to 20 years in prison for sexually assaulting Bhavana in a moving vehicle as she returned from a film shoot from Thrissur to Kochi. The men shot the attack on camera and it was alleged that actor Dileep had conspired and hired local goons to carry out the attack to settle personal scores.

"To those who still keep saying that Accused No1 was my personal driver, this is completely false!! He was not my driver, not my employee, and not someone I knew. He was a random person who happened to be assigned as a driver for a movie I worked on 2016," she added. Apparently, she met him just 'once or twice' before he sexually assaulted her.

Bhavana also pointed out that she expected this outcome where the alleged mastermind, Dileep now free, would get a clean chit.

"This verdict may surprise many people, but it did not surprise me. As early as 2020, I began to feel that something was not right. Every the prosecution noticed changes in the way case was being handled," she said. She also claimed that her petitions to move the case to a higher court like India's Apex court over 'trust issues' were ignored.

"Every request to move this case away from the same judge was dismissed," said Bhavana. While her note was emotional, she also thanked her fans for supporting her during this tough, traumatic trial.

"After 8 years, 9 months, 23 days, I finally saw a small ray of light at the end of a very long and painful journey. Six of the accused have been convicted and for that I am grateful." She also said the conviction was a fitting answer to all those who chose call her pain a "lie and a made-up story'. In the third slide, she listed out six reasons why she allegedly lost faith during the trial. She claimed her fundamental rights were not protected.

"The memory card was found to have been illegally accessed by three times while it was in court custody," she said.

Her second point was that 'two public prosecutors resigned from the case' during the trial.

"Both of them personally told me not to expect justice from this court, as they felt it was biased." Also her pleas to investigate into the memory card tampering were repeatedly ignored. While she sought a judge change, the accused filed a request to retain the same judge. She also said she wrote letters to political heads including India's president and Prime Minister about her concerns. She wanted them to intervene. Her request to conduct the court proceedings in an open court, in front of media and the public were also not paid heed to.

While the December 12, 2025 verdict has brought partial closure to one of Kerala’s most disturbing criminal cases, with an Ernakulam court sentencing six men, including prime accused Sunil alias “Pulsar Suni,” to 20 years’ rigorous imprisonment, the actress is yet to get closure.

The acquittal of actor Dileep, cited by the court as a consequence of the prosecution’s failure to conclusively establish a criminal conspiracy, has left the outcome deeply contested. The verdict has reignited an intense public debate in Kerala on the adequacy of punishment, institutional accountability and the film industry’s reckoning with power, privilege and justice — ensuring that the case’s impact will resonate far beyond the courtroom.