Palakkad (Kerala), March 28 Congress candidate from the Palakkad Assembly seat and actor, Ramesh Pisharody, said on Saturday that the woman who accused a former party councillor of sexual assault should receive justice.
At the same time, Pisharody said that the incident, though regrettable, would not affect the party's prospects in the constituency in the April 9 Assembly polls.
He also said that what happened to the woman was wrong, and the perpetrator should be punished.
"The police and the relevant authorities should take all necessary steps to ensure that the complainant woman receives justice. Anyone who commits such an act should be punished," he said.
The actor said that he did not personally know the accused councillor, Prashob C Valsan, and recognized him from news reports as someone who had been part of his election campaign.
"He accompanied us during the campaign. Beyond that, I don't know anything about that person," Pisharody told reporters here.
When asked if the allegations against Valsan would affect the party's chances in the polls, he said that individual actions by a ward member would not have such an impact.
When asked if Valsan should resign as a councillor following his expulsion from the party, he said that it is a decision that the Congress leadership has to make.
The woman, who belongs to a Scheduled Tribe community, has alleged that the councillor sexually assaulted her multiple times, promising her a stable job and later pressuring her to terminate the pregnancy.
She has filed complaints with the police and the chief minister.
The BJP and the ruling LDF have criticised the Congress over the issue, alleging that Prashob is a close aide of sitting MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, who was expelled from Congress and had been arrested earlier in sexual assault cases.
