Kochi: The Ernakulam Central Police have registered a case against Malayalam actor Shwetha Menon for allegedly earning money by acting in obscene films and advertisements. She has been booked under Section 67(a) of the Information Technology Act, which deals with the punishment for publishing or transmitting material containing sexually explicit acts in electronic form. She is also facing charges under Sections 3 and 5 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act.

Speaking to Manorama News, director Blessy dismissed the case as a deliberate attempt to malign the candidate, stating that Shwetha had not appeared in any scenes of a sexually explicit nature. "The movie 'Kalimannu' underwent censorship before its release. If none of this was a problem then, why is it a problem now?" Blessy said.

Shwetha is facing non-bailable charges in the case at a time when she is preparing to contest for the post of president in the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA). The case also assumes significance given the increased likelihood of Shwetha becoming the president of AMMA. With actor Jagadeesh withdrawing from the fray, Shwetha and actor Devan are competing for the top post.

The FIR was registered following an order issued by the Ernakulam Chief Judicial Magistrate Court, based on a complaint filed by social activist Martin Menachery from Ernakulam. 

In the complaint, Martin has alleged that the state award-winning actor is involved in the trade and distribution of pornographic content through adult websites. The films and advertisements in which Shweta acted years ago are being cited as the basis for this allegation. As per Martin's complaint, Shweta has acted 'intimately' in the Kamasutra advertisement and films like 'Paleri Manikyam', 'Rathinirvedam', and 'Kalimannu', and the visuals from these are circulating on social media and adult websites.

He accused the actor of using her roles in films to earn money by promoting such content, and claimed that visuals were circulated via social media and adult sites.