Ranjith Resigns Amid Misconduct Allegations

Malayalam director Ranjith resigned as the chairman of the Kerala Chalachitra Academy following allegations of inappropriate behavior by Bengali actress Sreelekha Mitra, concerning an incident from 2009. Despite Ranjith's claims of innocence and his assertion that the allegations are part of a conspiracy against him and the CPI(M)-led government, he decided to step down to prevent tarnishing the state's image. The resignation was amid mounting pressure from various political and film industry figures, including calls for his resignation from the CPI and the youth wing AIYF. Additionally, the Kerala government has set up a Special Investigative Team to probe the broader allegations of misconduct within the Malayalam film industry following the release of the Hema Committee report, which highlighted gender abuse and sexual exploitation. This episode closely follows another resignation in the Malayalam film industry, where actor Siddique stepped down from the AMMA following similar allegations.