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Tamil Nadu police pulled up in Khushboo case
Indo-Asian News Service

Chennai, Nov 24 (IANS) Madras High Court Thursday directed the Tamil Nadu director general of police to file a report on why protests were allowed in the state against actress Khushboo and director Suhasini Maniratnam, who are in the midst of a controversy over their comments on pre-marital sex.

The court passed the order on a petition by advocate Surya Prakash seeking a direction to the police to stop the demonstrations that, he said, were "hindering normal life in the state". 

A division bench comprising Chief Justice A.P. Shah and Justice F.M. Ibrahim Kalifulla wanted to know from the police how violent demonstrations were allowed against two women, especially within a courthouse, in a state where women were said to be safe.

The judges posted the petition for further hearing on Dec 2.

Khushboo has been facing criticism and protests from political parties like the Pattali Makkal Katchi and the Dalit Panthers of India since September when her opinion on pre-marital sex was published in India Today magazine as part of an all-India survey it conducted.

Khusboo had said it was all right for girls to have pre-marital sex as long as safe sex practices were adopted.

Suhasini, wife of director Maniratnam, too faced criticism for supporting Khushboo's right to freedom of expression.

The two women have nearly 40 defamation cases against them filed by political activists. Last week, protestors threw tomatoes, eggs and slippers when Khushboo appeared in a Mettur court in connection with one such case. 
 
Chidambaram, CPI support Khushboo
Indo-Asian News Service

Chennai, Nov 20 (IANS) Actress Khushboo, facing protests and court cases over her remarks on premarital sex, Sunday found support from Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram and the Communist Party of India (CPI).

"In India, one has got the right to speech and freedom to express views. Attempts to curtail or take away these cannot be accepted", said Chidambaram, who however refused to comment on Khushboo's remarks.

"There is no need for one to react to another's views. I am not going to comment on it", he told reporters in Sivaganga, his constituency in Tamil Nadu.

Writing in a magazine, Khushboo had said it was okay to have sex before marriage, provided precautions were taken. A section of the society has criticised the actress for the comment, calling it a denigration of the Tamil culture.

Khushboo and Suhasini Maniratnam, an actress who expressed support to her, were facing a number of court cases and protests led by the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) and the Dalit Panthers of India.

The CPI also came out in defence of Khushboo and urged protesting groups not to resort to "undemocratic means".

The agitation seemed to be "conducted with political motives" and the cases against Khushboo had "degenerated to the lowest level," CPI state secretary D. Pandian said in a statement.

Freedom of expression is enshrined in the Constitution, the CPI leader said, adding: "If there were to be opposite views to what the actress had stated, they should be expressed in the form of rejoinders."
 

Rights body comes out in support of Khushboo
Indo-Asian News Service

Chennai, Nov 19 (IANS) Film personalities Khushboo and Suhasini Maniratnam, facing court cases over their remarks on pre-marital sex, Saturday found support from the People's Union of Civil Liberties (PUCL). 

The PUCL said in a statement here that actress Khushboo's remarks in response to a magazine's query on pre-marital sex were "not a threat to public order or morality", as some political parties had alleged.

PUCL vice-president Sudha Ramalingam said that protests against Khushboo and against actress Suhasini, who supported her, were "attempts to make tolerant Tamils appear cruel or brutal towards an individual".

"Tamils are being misguided and made to react to the statements of Khushboo and Suhasini, without applying the principles of law or cultural norms, which the so-called hurt tend to hold high," she said.

"From Khushboo to Suhasini, the cultural, moral and religious policing is now being extended to Sania Mirza and it will not take too long to throttle all women's voices and set the clock back to the dark ages," Ramalingam said.

A lawyer herself, the PUCL official said the cases filed against Khushboo and Suhasini were vexatious and "should not be entertained" by courts.

As many as 25 cases have been filed against Khushboo and ten against Suhasini by activists of the Pattali Makkal Katchi and the Dalit Panthers of India.

Proceedings against Khushboo, Prabhu Chawla stayed
Indo-Asian News Service

Chennai, Nov 17 (IANS) The Madurai bench of the Madras High Court Thursday stayed proceedings in a case against India Today editor Prabhu Chawla for publishing Khusbhoo's remarks on pre-marital sex, while two other courts stayed proceedings against the actress.

The bench stayed the proceedings in the case filed at a Tirunelveli court for eight weeks. The magazine's Tamil edition had carried the actress' remarks Sep 28.

Proceedings in a similar case filed against the actress at the Sankarankovil magistrate court in Tirunelveli district have also been stayed for eight weeks.

Chawla, who moved the Madurai bench seeking to quash the case, said PMK leader R. Ramkumar had lodged a complaint against him and Khushboo "only to settle political scores against the actress".

He also said the complaint was made "to silence the voice of the media from expressing their fair opinion".

In the third case, Justice M. Chockalingam stayed proceedings in a similar case against Khushboo in the Madurai judicial magistrate court-II for four weeks.

Two other petitions to quash similar cases are pending before the judicial magistrate-II here.

Khushboo is reported to have said there was nothing wrong with girls indulging in pre-marital sex as long as it was protected, fuelling criticism from many quarters in Tamil Nadu.
 
Khushboo granted conditional bail
Indo-Asian News Service

Chennai, Nov 16 (IANS) A Tamil Nadu court Wednesday granted conditional bail to Film actress Khushboo in a defamation suit over her controversial remarks about premarital sex.

Mettur judicial magistrate S. Sreedharan granted her the bail on a personal surety of Rs.5,000 and ordered her not to speak on the issue after she formally surrendered before the magistrate's court. 

The hearing in the case was adjourned to Dec 16.

The actress had defended in media pre-marital sex, leading to protests from several groups. 

The court had issued a non-bailable warrant against the actress for her failure to appear before it Nov 11 in connection with the defamation suit.

Khushboo had then moved the Madras High Court for an anticipatory bail as she apprehended arrest.

The plea had come up for hearing at the Madras High Court Tuesday and her lawyer Asokan had contended that she could be granted an anticipatory bail as she had not committed "any gruesome crime". 

After hearing the arguments, Judge Z. Hussain had posted the hearing for Wednesday, but Khushboo's counsel announced the same day their decision to withdraw the bail application.

Outside the Mettur court premises, police had to resort to baton charge to contain protesting crowds who were demanding jail for the actress.

Volunteers of the Dalit Panthers of India and the Pattali Makkal Katchi, under the banner of a Tamil Protection Movement, had gathered in large numbers to demonstrate against Khushboo. 

They threw tomatoes and rotten eggs and also waved banners condemning the actress. The crowd turned violent when a large number of policemen in riot gear stopped them from getting close to the court building.

Similar protests continued for the fifth day against actress Suhasini Mani Rathnam, who had defended Khushboo, and four cases of defaming Tamil culture have been filed against her. 

Meanwhile, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court Wednesday admitted Khushboo's petition seeking to quash yet another case filed against her.

Admitting the petition, Justice M. Chockalingam issued notice to the complainant and has posted the case for hearing Thursday.

Khushboo's lawyers submitted to the court that she "might not be able to attend every hearing" as a number of cases have been filed against her in various places in Tamil Nadu.

The hearing in the matter was posted for Nov 21.
  

Narain Karthikeyan defends Khushboo
Indo-Asian News Service

New Delhi, Nov 16 (IANS) Beleaguered southern star Khushboo Wednesday found support from India's Formula 1 driver and co-Tamilian Narain Karthikeyan who defended her views on pre-marital sex.

Speaking at the Hindustan Times Leadership summit here, he said there was nothing wrong in what Khushboo had said although people were offended by her statement.

Khushboo had said it was fine for girls to indulge in premarital sex if it was protected, a comment that led some to say that it hurt Tamil sentiments and even prompted defamation cases against her in Tamil Nadu.

 
Actress Khushboo appears in Tamil Nadu court
Indo-Asian News Service

Chennai, Nov 15 (IANS) Actress Khushboo is to surrender before a Tamil Nadu court Wednesday in connection with a defamation case over her remarks supporting pre-marital sex.

Khushboo went to Judicial Magistrate S. Sreedharan's court in Mettur, 600 km southwest of Chennai, Tuesday to surrender but the magistrate was not present.

The actress then recorded her presence in the court register. "I came to surrender and will come to the court tomorrow (Wednesday)," she told reporters at the premises.

On Friday, Sreedharan had issued a non-bailable warrant against Khushboo for failing to appear in court in the defamation suit.

Khushboo had earlier filed an anticipatory bail application before the Madras High Court, fearing arrest.

Acting on this application, judge S. Sardar Zakharia Hussain reserved orders Tuesday after hearing arguments by the actress's counsel R. Asokan and A. Sirajudeen.

He heard counsel for A. Murugesan, who filed the complaint against the actress at the Mettur court in Salem district.

Judge Hussain said his order on the bail plea would come Wednesday.

The Mettur judge too is expected to give his order Wednesday.

Khushboo's friend, actress Suhasini, wife of noted director Mani Ratnam, who has been targeted by civil society groups for backing Khushboo, is now facing two cases filed against her by activists of the PMK, an ally of the central government.

The Tamil Nadu Nadigar Sangam (South Indian Film Artistes Association) has lambasted Suhasini for supporting Khushboo.

A few days ago, taking part in a film festival, Suhasini had apologised to Khushboo "on behalf of Tamils". On Tuesday, Suhasini reportedly sent a letter to the Sangam, explaining her position and remarks.

Several cases have been filed in lower courts in Tamil Nadu against Khushboo following her comments in an interview about the rising trend of pre-marital sex in the state. Khushboo had said in the interview that it was fine for girls to indulge in pre-marital sex as long as they took precautions. 

Her remarks were widely criticised by political parties, which alleged she had hurt Tamil sentiments. 
 
Khushboo: fall of a screen goddess
By Papri Sri Raman, Indo-Asian News Service

Chennai, Oct 5 (IANS) It was meant to be just another interview, but it was enough to reduce one of Tamil Nadu's most popular actresses, a virtual screen goddess at that, to tears.

Although a relative calm has since set in, the police are still guarding Khushboo's Chennai house to protect her from demonstrators furious over her statement that it was all right for women to have sex before marriage.

The heartthrob of the 1990s told the Tamil edition of India Today that pre-marital sex is okay "provided safety measures are followed to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases".

Once the magazine carrying her interview hit the stands, all hell broke lose. The Tamil and Telugu film actress faced the wrath of some of the very people who used to literally worship her.

Her effigies were burnt, and the police had to be deployed outside her house. Khushboo is right now not speaking to the media.

The Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), a member of India's ruling coalition that joined the protests, even demanded that the Maharashtrian star should quit Tamil Nadu for good.

Only a decade ago a temple was built in Tiruchirapalli town for Khushboo despite the fact that she is a Muslim. Such was her popular appeal across Tamil Nadu, home to a thriving film industry.

Khushboo, who is 41 and now a mother of two daughters, earned tremendous fan following in the early 90s "because she deftly portrayed the role of an ordinary Tamil girl", says Shobha Warrier, a film writer.

Khushboo began her career in the '70s as a child actress in Mumbai and acted in films like "Reshma", co-starring Sunil Dutt and Smita Patil. She moved to south India in the '80s, acting in dozens of Telugu and Tamil films. 

"She completely identified with the persona of a Tamil girl," added Saraswathi Srinivasan, another film critic.

Romantically linked for a while with Sivaji Ganesan's son Prabhu, Khushboo paired with him in the box office hit "Chinna Thambi". She finally married actor director Sundar C.

Sundar's recent successes have been films like "London" and the Kamal Haasan-starrer "Anbe Sivam".

Khushboo has herself successfully effected the transition from that of being a heroine to the housewife on the screen.

Her biggest plus point today is she is the host of the hugely popular quiz show, "Jackpot", on Jaya TV where she is a typical upper middle class 'mami' (matronly figure).

"She speaks Tamil fluently, which by itself is an achievement," says Warrier.

Khushboo's recent comeback ventures have been in Malayalam cinema.

The continuing attacks on Khushboo despite an apology from her and the protests before her house has many fuming.

"Throughout history, people have arrogated to themselves the authority to decide what is moral and what is immoral," says V. Vasanthi Devi, a rights activist. Actor activist Rohini adds: "There are no doubt different sets of rules for men and women."

The South Indian Film Artistes Association (SIFAA) has condemned the demonstration by political outfits in front of its offices, but it has not come out in defence of her.

Some leading male stars too have kept quiet. One reason is Khushboo's spat with Thangar Bachan, a Dalit actor-director in August when he made comments that amounted to comparing actresses with prostitutes.

This led to a strike in the Tamil movie industry, and SIFAA forced Bachan to apologise. He did that. Now Khusbhoo is at the receiving end of a similar vocal tirade.