HC to cops: Prosecute Akshay, Twinkle

While quashing all legal proceedings against Abigail Stephen Rosa, an employee of the co- promoter of Lakme Fashion Week, the Bombay high court on Monday asked the police to go ahead and prosecute actor Akshay Kumar and his wife Twinkle Khanna in a 2009 obscenity case.

Justice Abhay Thipsay, while quashing the complaint observed that Rosa was not the one who scripted the alleged obscene act. The court, however, remarked that the police should prosecute the actors and the director of the fashion show.

Assistant public prosecutor Rajeshri Gadhvi while talking to this newspaper, said, “I argued that Rosa had the knowledge that the show was called ‘ unbuttoned’, after which she approached the senior police inspector, theatre branch, for a NOC. The NOC was granted on certain conditions and no obscenity was one such con- dition.”

Akshay Kumar had sparked a controversy during the fashion week in March 2009 when his wife Twinkle unbuttoned his jeans on the ramp to promote a popular denim brand.

Social worker Anil Nair had filed a complaint with the Vakola police station on March 30, 2009.

Rosa had sought discharge from the case claiming that she has been falsely dragged into it. According to Rosa, she was not connected with the show except for applying for the NOC for the event from the police station and was discharging a purely secretarial function.

However, the FIR had named her as the organiser.

Abigail was arrested and released on bail on August 25, 2009.

In April 2011 Rosa withdrew her petition in HC for quashing the FIR after high court indicated that it would dismiss her plea as prima facie a case was made out for issue of process.