An allegation of misconduct levelled against actor and Communist Party of India (Marxist) MLA M. Mukesh in 2018 resurfaced on Sunday, leading to the Opposition demanding his resignation. Mr. Mukesh denied the allegations and claimed that it was part of a political conspiracy against him.
After the #MeToo movement exploded across the world, a casting director had in October 2018 tweeted about an alleged incident which happened close to 20 years ago, when she was part of a team of a television show anchored by Mr. Mukesh. She accused Mr. Mukesh of calling multiple times on her hotel room telephone. On the next schedule, he ensured that she stayed in a room next to his, she wrote, and added that the then showrunner Derek O’Brien, currently a Trinamool Congress MP, had got her out on the next flight.
Speaking to the media on Sunday, Mr. Mukesh said he had never met the woman. “This is a targeted attack because I am a CPI(M) MLA. When these allegations surfaced in 2018, I had clarified that I don’t remember such an incident. It is being claimed that I called the room several times, but she never picked up the phone. How can she conclude without picking up the phone that it was me? Bringing this up again is childish,” he said.
