Kerala Congress MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, who is already accused of sexual harassment, is in new trouble after a trans woman activist accused him of sending her "sexually regressive messages."
Trans woman activist Avanthika claimed that Mamkootathil had once communicated his sex fantasy and "rape fantasies" to her, and said she had complained to party authorities but received no response.
On Thursday, Mamkootathil quit as Kerala Youth Congress President amid charges of misconduct by Malayalam actor Rini George against a youth leader of a major political party. George didn't identify anybody but the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) indicated Mamkootathil, who has denied all accusations.
Talking to Malayalam media, Avanthika has said, "I came across Rahul at a media debate during the Thrikkakara by-election campaign. I sent him a friend request on social media after that. We became close friends soon. At first, he would call me after 11 pm. Then he started calling me repeatedly. He didn't talk much about politics in the entire conversation."
She went on, "He (Mamkootathil) would send me sexually retrograde messages frequently. He even revealed one time about his desire to make love to me in the manner of rape. I informed Congress leaders of this, but nothing was done. How can a man who fantasizes about rape be a role model in society, if at all an MLA."
Mamkootathil hasn't responded so far to the recent allegations. On the allegations of harassing Malayalam actor, he stated, "I challenge the individual who registered a complaint against me to establish the case in the court of law. No tangible complaint has been registered against me from any source."
"They did not ask me to resign. The actress is my friend and I don't think the person she talked about was me. She is my good friend and will continue to be so. I think that I have not done anything illegal or against the Constitution of the country until now," he said.
In an audio recording made public by a Malayalam news channel accusing him of compelling a woman to abort a pregnancy, Mamkootathil asserted, "In the current age, it is not hard to make such recordings." He added, "If at all I made any errors, I am prepared to face them in court. Up till today, I have done nothing wrong in conscience. If anybody has anything to argue on that, they can take it to court.
Leader of Opposition V D Satheesan stated on Thursday that the party is considering the issue and would act accordingly.
The actor's claims, presented in a viral online interview, assert that the politician initially started sending her unwanted messages three years ago. She added, "I met the politician on social media. His inappropriate actions started three years ago, when I first got objectionable messages from him.
She also accused the leader of even proposing to reserve a five-star hotel room for her stay and blamed senior party leaders for turning a deaf ear to her complaint, so allowing the youth leader to keep getting key slots. When she threatened him that she would turn to party authorities, he allegedly sent her packing, telling her, "You can go and tell anyone. who cares?"
"Whatever image I had in my mind about them has been broken. Even after I lodged my complaint, he was appointed to various key positions in the party," she explained, including that the accused also asked her what happened to political officials who had previously been accused of sexual harassment.
For safety purposes and because of her "lack of confidence in the justice system," the actress explained she is not making a formal complaint. She stressed that she "did not want to embarrass the political party in question" but wished to defend other women reportedly being targeted by the leader. "I have not experienced any assault; I only received these messages. But through my friends, I learned that a number of other women were subjected to harassment, and I am doing it for them," she told.
After the viral interview, the BJP blamed Mamkootathil and called for his resignation. Demonstrations outside his office in Palakkad resulted in police clashes. The DYFI and youth wing of CPI(M) also organized demonstrations.
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