Kochi: Activist Rehana Fathima, in the news for her attempt to visit the Lord Ayyappa Temple at Sabarimala, has refuted the allegations raised against her by model Reshmi Nair, who is the main accused in an online sex racket case.
Rehana, also a model and actress, had reached the Nadapanthal in front of the temple on Friday but had to return following protests.
Reshmi had claimed on social media on Friday that Rehana had met BJP leader K Surendran at Mangaluru before setting out to Sabarimala. A plan to spark rioting in Sabarimala had been hatched at the meeting, she added.
Rehana reasoned that it was after noticing this post that Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran said that there was a conspiracy behind her visit to the Ayyappa shrine.
On alleged links with the BJP leader, Rehana replied that such claims have been made due to a social media post a couple of years ago.
“Two years ago, BJP leader Surendran had uploaded a post supporting the entry of women in the menstruating age group to Sabarimala. One of my friends tagged me to this post. As I supported this view, I accepted this tag. This is my only connection with K Surendran,” Rehana asserted.
“Reshmi’s statement that I met K Surendran in Mangaluru and that she was aware of that meeting is totally false,” she added.
What provoked Reshmi
According to Rehana, Reshmi was trying to settle scores with her for giving a statement against Reshmi and partner Rahul Pasupalan after they were arrested in the sex racket case.
When they were arrested in the ase, the couple had told the police that Rehana too was involved in the racket to pay off the debts caused to her partner Manoj Sreedhar after he produced a film named ‘Pling’. But Rehana and Manoj gave a statement to the police that it was in fact Rehana who funded the movie and there were no liabilities in this regard.
Rehana and Manoj had met Reshmi and Rahul during the 2014 ‘Kiss of love’ protest, but had apparently disassociated from them after finding that their intentions were suspect. “Some media had reported on this at that time. Videos of our statement are still available on YouTube,” Rehana claimed.
Rehana, who started the trek up the hill to the Sabarimala temple on Friday morning along with her family, was blocked by devotees near Nadapanthal.
When Rehana’s climb at Sabarimala became public knowledge, two persons wearing helmets trespassed into her house at BSNL quarters at Panampilly Nagar, Ernakulam, and caused widespread damage.
