The National Commission for Women has sent a notice to Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis and Director General of Police D.D. Padsalgikar enquiring about the delay in the investigation against Alok Nath. The veteran actor has been accused of sexual harassment and violation by writer-director Vinta Nanda as she alleged that he raped her 19 years ago.
The notice also mentions that Nath has been accused of sexual misconduct by several other women and not just Nanda. After Nanda shared her harrowing experience with Nath, several other actors such as Deepika Deshpande Amin and Sandhya Mridul, opened up about being misbehaved with by the senior actor.
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File photo of Alok Nath.[/caption]
Mr Padsalgikar, in fact, has been directed to start the investigation immediately and file a status report within 15 days of the date of receipt.
With the #MeToo movement gaining momentum in India since the last month, Nanda, in a chilling Facebook post two weeks ago, accused Nath of sexually assaulting her when she was the producer of 90’s television show Tara, which cast the actor in the lead role.
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Vinta Nanda photographed in Mumbai.[/caption]
Nath, also known as the ‘sanskaari’ actor on account of the virtuous roles that he plays in family dramas, had said that he “neither denies nor agrees” with Nanda’s allegations and that “only what a woman says will be considered”.
The Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE), in the meantime, on Monday said it will issue a show cause notice to Nath as his response to its affiliate association Indian Film and Television Directors' Association (IFTDA), was not "satisfactory”.
