Speaker P. Sreeramakrishnan has granted permission to the Kerala Women’s Commission’s investigation wing to question P.C. George, MLA, for his allegedly defamatory remarks about a female actor who was abducted earlier this year and referred the issue to the Ethics and Privileges Committee of the Assembly.
The Speaker’s decision came in response to a letter from Kerala Women’s Commission seeking the Speaker’s clearance for questioning Mr. George. Commission chairperson M.C. Josephine also wrote a letter to the Speaker on Thursday expressing her strong protest against the statements made by Mr. George against her and the commission following the commission’s decision to register suo motu a case against him in the matter.
Mr. Sreeramakrishnan had himself put up a post on his Facebook page regretting the remarks attributed to Mr. George and calling for greater responsbiltiy on the part of legislators when commenting on public issues and individuals. In what is being widely seen as a retaliatory post on his FB page, Mr. George questioned the Speaker’s observations which, he said, smacked of political bias. Mr. George himself is a member of the Assembly Committee on Ethics and Privileges and the Speaker’s decision might force him to opt out of the committee’s deliberations relating to him.
Ms. Josephine, while addressing a public meeting here on Thursday, said the MLA’s statements against the actor were an insult not only to her, but also to all women. The commission was forced to suo motu register a case against the MLA given the seriousness of his observations.
However, mindful of his privileges, the commission had informed the Speaker about it on Monday itself. What the MLA did in response was to criticise the commission and its chairperson. Criticism of the commission was tantamount to insulting the legal process and that was regrettable, she said.
Ms. Josephine said she had visited the abducted actor on Wednesday in the wake of the actor sending a letter to the Chief Minister against the repeated remarks by the MLA against her. In her letter, the actor had expressed apprehension that such repeated remarks would adversely affect the case.
The commission had the power to suo motu take action in any violation of women’s rights. “No woman should suffer such attacks. They should resist and question it,” she said, adding that the commission would not be a mute spectator.
