Dileep prayed, Pulsar Suni was chatty: Inside the courtroom on actress assault case judgement day

Kochi: The air inside the tightly packed Ernakulam Principal Session Court on the third floor of the District Court Complex was thick with anticipation. It was just before 11 am, when the crowd - a tense mix of advocates, court staff, media personnel, accused persons and the police - rose as Judge Honey M Varghese entered, poised to deliver the verdict in the sensational 2017 Actor Assault Case that had held Kerala and its film industry in suspense for years.

Among the ten accused, actor Dileep (Accused 8) was a focal point. Clad in a simple white shirt and blue jeans, his face was framed by a newly grown beard, and his forehead bore the spiritual marks of sandal paste, saffron, and vermillion. He stood silently at the one end of the accused box towards the rear end of the courtroom, his eyes often closed, an image of quiet devotion or profound anxiety. He arrived at 10.55 am, five minutes before the proceedings began, seemingly isolating himself in a final, private moment of reckoning.

Just a few feet away, the prime accused, Sunilkumar alias Pulsar Suni, the prime accused, was an image of contrast. Wearing a black T-shirt and white pants, Suni appeared calm, even chatty, with the other accused before the session began. Despite the drama unfolding, neither Suni nor Dileep exchanged even a single glance throughout the proceedings.

The courtroom, already filled to capacity, grew absolutely silent as the Judge began reading the judgement. The initial declaration that accused 1 to 6, including Pulsar Suni, were found guilty, sent a visible tremor through Dileep. He looked anxious, his eyes frequently lifting and closing as if searching for a prayerful assurance.

Then came the turning point. The Judge declared that the prosecution had failed to prove the charges of criminal conspiracy and destruction of evidence against Accused 8 (Dileep).

A loud, collective ‘ooh’ escaped from the tightly packed room, which was a spontaneous burst of surprise and release from advocates, mediapersons, and police alike, signifying the magnitude of the moment. Dileep was acquitted, along with Accused 7, 9, and 15, as charges against them were not proven by the prosecution.

For Dileep, the transformation was immediate. The tautness melted into a smile of relief. He pressed his palms together in a respectful gesture towards the court, then looked up, closing his eyes once more in a silent prayer of gratitude to God.

The courtroom's atmosphere instantly shifted from solemn to celebratory. Advocates, including women lawyers and members of the public inside the court, began greeting and congratulating him. As he walked out of the courtroom, the crowd thickened in the corridors. Court staff and advocates surrounded him, exchanging pleasantries and eagerly taking selfies with the acquitted actor.

With a steady smile, Dileep thanked everyone as he climbed down the stairs amidst the throng, leaving the court complex a free man to address the huge crowd waiting outside.

Meanwhile, the mood on the other side of the accused box remained stoic. Pulsar Suni's facial expressions, though he was found guilty, remained unchanged, as if the verdict confirmed his expectation. He and the five other guilty accused were asked to remain in the box by the judge. They stood with a quiet composure in a room flooded with relief. The six convicts were officially remanded into judicial custody until their sentencing, posted for December 12.